INFOKMATIOiX AND ILLUSTMTIOK 



1 



INFORMATION AND 
ILLUSTRATION. 



HELPS GATHEEED FEOM 
FACTS, IIGUEES, ANECDOTES, BOOKS, etc. 

FOB 



EEV. G: S/' BOWES, B.A., 

rOEMEELT EECTOE OF CHILLETTDEir J SCHOLAB OF COEPUS CHEISTI COLLEGE, 
CAMBEIDGE; ATJTHOE of ILLUSTEATIVE GATHEEINGS ; " " SCEIPIUEE 
ITSELF THE ILLUSTEATOE j '* " Ilf PEOSPECT OF SUNDAY." 



KEW YOEK: 
BOBEET CAETEE AND BEOS., 530 BEOADWAY. 
1884. 



PEEFACE. 



«IOT0EMATI0:N' and illustration""— and In- 
formation as the groundwork of Illustration, It has often 
struck me, does Information find the place in public teaching 
it might do advantageously 1 

Allowing the full value of argument and reasoning, of 
figure and poetry, is there not a greater use to be made of 
teaching by instruction? I have generally found, that the 
judicious statement of a striking fact in a public address, 
seldom fails to arrest the attention. There is an instinct in 
human nature to seek after knowledge, and, rightly used, 
" Knowledge is power for good. 

There are, I am aware, difficulties in the way of carrying 
out this mode of teaching. Some persons say, *^ Facts are 
such dry things." But that depends upon the way in which 
they are told. A dull speaker would make the most 
pathetic story heavy; a lively speaker will invest the 
simplest fact with interest. The combination of a few 
striking facts with appropriate sentiment is what is most 
effective. 

Then there is the difficulty of collecting facts, having 
them at hand just when they are wanted, and having good 
reason to believe they are accurate. And most of all, there 



vi 



PRUFACE. 



is tlie need of the greatest caution in drawing inferences 
from ^' facts or figures." A fact may be true, yet there may 
be a counter-fact ! A man may say, e. g., Newport is in 
the Isle of Wight; another standing by may add, Why, 
ITewport is in Monmouthshire ; a third knows ]N'ewport 
in Essex ; a fourth in Shropshire, and so on. All these are 
strictly true, yet all are different. A short time ago in a 
Christian periodical, a statement was made that on January 1, 
1881, there were 1,011,339 persons in receipt of parish relief 
in the United Kingdom, from which the inference was drawn 
that therefore about one person in every thirty is a pauper. 
This might seem plausible, taking the whole population of the 
country. But Mr. Purdy, who is at the head of the statisti- 
cal department of the Poor Law Board, states that the number 
of applications for relief during a year are three and a half 
times the number upon the books on any given day ! This 
gives a total of 3,854,686 applications, or about one in every 
ten of the entire population receiving relief ! Or, to take another 
example. By the noble efforts of the Bible Societies of our 
own and of other countries, it is estimated that there is now 
a Bible, in whole or in part, for one in seven of the whole 
human family. But this must not be taken as if the whole 
number of copies were equally distributed in England, and 
Erance, India, and China, &c. Of the 96,000,000 of copies 
issued by the British and Foreign Bible Society, the largest 
proportion have been taken by the people speaking English, 
French, and German, and only 26,000,000 left for the rest of 
the world (see pages 15 — 23). 

It is with no little diffidence, therefore, that the present 
small compendium of " Information and Illustration " is 
offered to the Christian public. I have endeavoured to use 
every care to make the Information accurate and the Illus- 
trations pointed. Should any reader detect errors, I feel 
sure they will be put down to inadvertence, and I shaU 



PEEFACE. 



vii 



esteem it a favour if they will kindly send me word, 
through my publishers, that they may be corrected in the 
next Edition. 

It will be observed that in the present volume I have 
ventured upon a much larger field than is commonly occupied 
by works of Illustration for the Pulpit. It has often 
seemed to me that there was room for a book for the use 
also of school-room lectures, mothers' meetings. Temperance 
addresses, working-men's classes, and many other similar 
gatherings now happily so abounding. One mark of the 
present age, too, is that of Social Progress, and it is of the 
greatest importance to bring before the working classes in- 
formation affecting their own condition ; upon such subjects 
as Education, Emigration, the cost of crime in our Prisons, 
Police, &c. ; the way in which their money, so hardly earned, 
is lavishly wasted; observance of the Lord's Day, &c., &c. 
There are facts too concerning our Agriculture, Commerce, 
Army and ^avy, &c., which have an interest for every 
Englishman. Such topics are brought more and more promi- 
nently before the public every year, and it is well they 
should be. Social progress is one of the truest handmaids 
of religion, and many faults arise from want of thought, 
which are exposed in their true character by sound knowledge 
and useful information. 

It will be seen that I have included many stories and 
hints for children, adapted for " children's services." 

It was my original intention to have given a short history 
and account of many of our most prominent Eeligious Societies. 
I found, however, the difficulty of getting reliable inform- 
ation so great, that for this and other reasons I was obliged 
to abandon the idea. 

One thing should also be added — I have purposely re- 
frained from " drawing the application," under the different 
heads of information. This would have greatly increased the 



vin 



PREFACE. 



size of the book, and every skilful teacher can gather them 
for himself. From the same fact often many inferences may 
be drawn. 

I cannot but trust that this work, such as it is, will be 
found useful and suggestive to many. The idea I have 
sought to work out, I feel sure is a good one, and if this effort 
should lead others to carry it out for themselves, besides using 
what they find here, I shall have my full reward. 

May God give it His abundant blessing. May it help to 
point many an arrow and sharpen many a sword used in His 
Service ; above all, may none ever use it without the deep 
feeling of dependence upon Him who alone is the Source and 
Dispenser of all truth. 



G. S. Bowes. 



INFOllMATION AND ILLUSTRATION 



ACCIDENTS. 

It is difficult to ascertain the exact number of accidents 
that occur every day and year in our country, "but some facts 
are published. From the returns, the number of persons 
killed on our railways in 1882 was 1121, and of persons 
injured 4601. Of those who were killed, 532 were railway 
servants, 306 were trespassers and suicides. The number of 
passengers killed v/as only 127, and of injured 1739. When 
we consider the vast number of passengers travelling (in 1881, 
622,423,000), the small liability to danger by railway travel- 
ling is certainly a wonder of the age. 

In mines, about 1000 lives are lost every year through 
accidents. In 1879 the number was 973; in 1880, 1318. 

The statistics of death from other causes is singular. About 
18,000 persons are killed by accidents in this country every 
year. Of these 188 were killed in one year by falling from 
scalfolding and ladders; 85 by falling from windows; 475 
by falling downstairs: altogether 1356 killed by falls of 
various kinds. The fatal accidents from horse conveyances 
were 1343; from burning, 310 wom^ en were burnt to death 
from their clothes taking fire — altogether from burning, 463 ; 
from scalds, 692 ; from drowning, 2897 ; from suffocation, 
895, of whom 73 were choired by eating food. 

B 



2 



ADOPTION. 



In London there is an average of seven serious accidents 
in the streets every day, though there are 7000 miles of 
streets. 

How little people generally show true thankfulness for 
preservation from accidents and harm ! 

Yet, when they do occur, the accidents of life are not 
seldom turned to blessings. ^' Consider," says Jeremy Taylor, 
^Hhat sad accidents and a state of aflliction is a school of 
virtue. God, who in mercy and wisdom governs the workl, 
would never have suffered so many sadnesses, and have sent 
them often to the most virtuous and the wisest men, but that 
He intends they should be the seminary of comfort, the nursery . 
of virtue, the exercise of wisdom, the trial of patience, the 
preparation for a crown, and the gate of glory." 

ADOPTIOK 

The rich man's mistake. I have heard of a rich man, who, 
in compassion to a beggar boy whom he met on the road, 
took him home to his own house and family, and adopted 
him as his child. It was a kind act, but did not answer 
to the good man's expectations. With fatherly care, he 
provided the boy food and clothing. The children of the 
family, following their father's example, showed him every 
kindness ; the boys played with him, the girls treated him as 
a brother ; but a low and vicious nature seemed too deeply 
ingrained in him to be easily eradicated, and he was only 
a source of trouble and grief to those who desired to be his 
friends. 

How different is it in the adoption of grace. Our heavenly 
Father, while He bestows new privileges, imparts a new 
nature to those whom He calls to be members of His family. 

ADVICE. 

"Our advice," says Scio, "must not fall like a violent 
storm, bearing down and making those to droop whom it is 
meant to cherish and refre-h. It must descend as the dew 



AGRICULTUEAL FACTS. 



3 



upon the tender lierb,.or like melting flakes of snow; tlie 
softer it falls the longer it dwells upon, and the deeper it 
sinks into, the mind. It there are few who have the humility 
to receive advice as they ought, it is often because there are 
few who have the discretion to convey it in a proper vehicle, 
and to qualify the harshness and bitterness of reproof, against 
which corrupt nature is apt to revolt, by an artful mixture of 
sweetening and agreeable ingredients. To probe the wound 
to the bottom, with all the boldness and resolution of a good 
spiritual surgeon, and yet with all the delicacy and tenderness 
of a friend, requires a very dexterous and masterly hand. An 
affable deportment, and a complacency of behaviour, will 
disarm the most obstinate ; whereas, if, instead of pointing out 
their mistake, we break out into unseemly sallies of passion, 
we cease to have any influence. 

AGRICULTUEAL FACTS. 

The total area of the United Kingdom is 77,513,000 acres, 
of which England and Wales have 37,319,221. The total 
breadth of land in 1882 under all kinds of cereals ia the 
United Kingdom was 10,620,196 acres (England and Yv^ales, 
7,500,210); of grain crops, 4,748,257 (England and Wales, 
2,788,969); of grass and pasture, 6,333,064 (England and 
Wales, 2,890,476). Under permanent pasture there is an 
area of 26,963,205 acres (England and Wales, 13,637,785). 
The orchards in the United Kingdom cover an area of 
187,553 acres; the market gardens of 48,194 acres, and the 
nursery grounds of 2,306 acres. 

The total rental of the agricultural land of Great Britain is 
about £48,000,000 yearly, and of Ireland about £12,000,000. 

Mr. W. Harris, speaking of the agricultural produce of the 
country, estimated the value of the produce of the soil of 
England and Wales at about £140,000,000, and probably 
with the produce of Scotland and Ireland £200,000,000. 

Mr. Eawcett, M.P., speaking in London of the wish ex- 
pressed by some people that the whole land of the country 

B 2 



4 



AMUSEMENT. 



should "be bought in by Government, said, " It would take 
£200,000,000 for such a purchase." 

The number of farmers and graziers in the country in 1871 
was 225,569; of farm servants, 134,157; of aL^ricultural 
labourers, 764,571 ; and of women employed 180,000. 
Altogether the total number of persons belonging to the 
agricultural class in England and Wales was 1,656,938. 

Mr. M'Cullock, in his * British Empire,' estimates the corn 
produce of an acre of average good land at thirty-two bushels ; 
the estimate given by the Board of Trade is twenty-eight 
bushels per acre. 

AMUSEMENT. 

Dr. Arnold wrote on the subject of books of amusement, 
Childishness in boys, even of good abilities, seems to me a 
growing fault, and I do not know to what to ascribe it, 
except to the greater number of exciting books of amusement. 
These completely satisfy all the intellectual appetite of a bo}'-, 
w^hich is rarely very voracious, and leave him totally palled, 
not only for his regular work, which I could well excuse 
in comparison, but for your literature of all sorts, even for 
history and poetry." 

A professional man well said, as the result of his ex- 
perience, " A leisure week, or even a leisure month, is pleasant 
enough, but a leisure year or leisure life-time is apt to become 
a leaden burden to carry." 

No man " (says Smiles) " can grow happy on amuse- 
ment." 

Mrs. Wesley, the mother of the Wesleys, laid down the 
following g^^od test for the lawfulness or otherwise of amuse- 
ments, which it would be well for those to read, who are in 
'doubt upon the subject : " Whatever weakens your reason, 
whatever impairs the tenderness of your conscience, what- 
ever obscures your sense of God, whatever increases the 
strength and authority of your body over your mind, — that 
thing to you is wrong, however innocent it may be in itself." 



ANSWERS TO PEAYER. 



5 



Dr. Chalmers. A gentleman once came to him under deep 
impressions, wishing to become a decided Christian, asking his 
advice, but adding, There is one thing I cannot give up — 
my liking for scenic representations ; may I go to them 1 " 
Dr. Chalmers replied, Yes ; as long as you wish." The 
gentleman did go twice, and then came back to say, ^'I have 
been, as you sanctioned it, but with my new feelings I can- 
not enjoy such a place as I used to do, and I will never go 
again." 

At the annual meeting of the Manchester Statistical Society 
a short time ago, a paper was read by Mr. W. E. A. Axon on 
' The Cost of Theatrical Amusements,' which stated that — 

London has one theatre to every 75,000 of the population. 
Mr. Axon calculates that the total receipt of all the British 
theatres during 1881 was about £2,929,000. 

Professor Leoni Levi reckons that the working classes 
spent £6,000,000 in amusements, though it is diflS.cult to 
know what is included in so indefinite a term. 

A^^SWEES TO PRAYEE. 

Dartmoor. — Some time ago. one bleak and stormy day 
in the depth of winter, Mr. W — , a Christian minister, set 
out from a Dartmoor village for another village, which 
touches the moor on the Okehampton side, where he was 
expecting to hold a service that evening. To have gone 
by the miain road would have lengthened his journey several 
miles ; he therefore decided to go " cross country " by the 
grass paths, which are plain enough when the weather is clear, 
but difficult to trace when it is foggy, as it was on this 
occasion. Thinking he knew the way, he travelled on some 
distance with a light heart, but unfortunately by some means 
strayed from the path, and became lost among the furze and 
heather bushes and huge boulders, with which the moor 
abounds. Bewildered and almost benighted, what could he 
do 1 To stand still would only make matters worse ; he 
therefore pushed on through the mist, in the direction which 



6 



ANSWERS TO PEAYER. 



seemed to him the right one. After continuing his conrse 
for about half-an-honr he came to a small plantation, where 
he paused. Tliere seemed nothing here to guide him, and he 
might be getting further from his destination rather than 
nearer to it. As a last resource he knelt down under the 
trees, and sought the guidance of that God wlio had never 
failed him in the past, and while so doing, he felt an assur- 
ance that help would come. 

In the village of M — lived Captain Y — , a man highly 
esteemed by all classes, and one Avho went in and out among 
the people as an angel of God. He was always ready to 
assist any one, and God often found liim work to do. On 
this evening upon which the minister was Io.>^t Captain F — 
sat by the tireside in his cosy parlour, thankful that he had 
a comfortable home, and that there was no need for him to 
stir out and face the storm. All in a moment a thought 
flashed into his mind, and quickly rising up, he said to his 
wife, am going out, but I shall not be long." " Where 
can you be going such a night as this]" she asked, adding, 
" Do stay in while you liave a chance." Yielding to her 
persuasions, he resumed his seat, but not for long. He rose 
a second time, saying, " I feel that God has something for 
me to do." Again his wife's remonstrances prevailed, and 
again he drew near the fire, but he was restless. He tried to 
read, but could not ; at last, taking up liis hat, he remarked, 
have a deep conviction that God wishes me to go 
and help some one who is in distress : who it can be I have 
not the slightest idea, but I must go out and see." With 
these vv^orJs upon his lips he left the house, and turning 
to the right, wandered up a narrow lane which led on to 
the moor. He had not been walking more than ten minutes 
when, as if by instinct, he stood still to listen and look round. 
**What is that]" he said to himself; "it sounds like the 
voice of some one who is in trouble, and it seems to come 
from the plantation : I'll go and see." Quietly he crept 
along until he came near enough to see a man kneeling in 



ANSWERS TO PEAYEE. 



7 



prayer, and to hear these words : " Lord, I am Thy servant, 
I am engaged in Thy service, and as Thou knowest, I have 
lost my way, and know not where I am. Be pleased to 
send some one to help me." Captain F — at once stepped 
forward and gave his hand to the minister, saying, " Tm 
your helper; God has sent me." The minister then told his 
story, and the Captain in return told his. They did not stay 
in the plantation very long. Captain P — • conducted the 
wayfarer to his own house, and introduced him to his wife 
as the man for whose benefit God had sent him out. He 
lent him a change of clothing (for he was wet through), gave 
him a good supper, thanked God for his deliverance, and 
put him into a warm bed. When morning came the minister 
was refreshed, and went on his way rejoicing, believing more 
fully than ever in the efficacy of prayer; while Captain 
F — found another illustration of his own doctrine, — when 
men are willing to be used by God, God will find them work 
to do, and make them a blessing to their fellows. 

Help sometimes sent from unlooked-for quarters. A 
God-feariug man was once reduced to the greatest straits : he 
had spent his last penny, and divided his last loaf among 
his hungry children. It was getting late ; his wife and 
children had gone to bed, but he resolved to stay up until he 
had laid his circumstances with faith before the Lord. Alone 
he knelt upon the hearth, told God all, reminded Him of His 
promises, and besought Him to supply their need. 

About a mile away from the cottage of this praying man 
lived a rich squire — a man of the vforld, who never troubled 
himself much about his neighbours, but allowed them, as 
he said, to " shift for themselves." That evening, while 
enjoying the pleasures of the table, he felt an impression that 
the man to whom w^e have referred was in distress ; and 
what was more singular, he felt that he ought to look into 
the case and act the part of a benefactor. That was some- 
tliing quite new to him, and he was at a loss to understand 
its meaning. He tried to get rid of the impression, but in 



8 



ANTI-SLAYERY SOCIETY. 



vain. He called liis man-servant, and directed him to fill a 
large basket with provisions, and take it to the man of whom 
he had been thinking, with the message tliat he would come 
to see him in the morning, and would try and find him work. 
Here, however, was a difficulty : the squire did not know his 
Txame, nor was he sure in what part of the village he lived. 
The servant was far from pleased that he had to turn out so 
late, nevertheless he obeyed orders. On reaching the viUage, 
he was wondering what to do for the best, when he saw a 
light in a cottage window, and at once went to the door to 
make enquiry. The door was opened by a middle-aged man, 
who, without expressing surprise at the late visit, looked into 
the servant's face, and at tlie basket, and exclaimed. " Thank 
God, my prayer is answered." The servant discovered that 
he had come to the right house, and that the man whom his 
master wished to relieve stood before him. Wlien the basket 
was emptied, and the cottager saw the good things? which had 
been sent for him, and when he heard that he was to go up 
to the hall next morning for work, he was almost overpowered, 
and it was with difficulty that he found words in which to 
express his gratitude to God and to the squire. The servant, 
fully satisfied with the result of his journey, returned home, 
told his master what he had seen and heard, and ventured to 
add, " I like that sort of work." The squire was delighted 
with the account ; his heart was affected, and for the first 
time in his life he felt that there was a pleasure in trying to 
make other people happy. The following day he found 
employment for the pious cottag^^r, who saw in his new 
situation and altered circumstances, as he had often seen 
before, the value of prayer. 

AOTI-SLAYERY SOCIETY-^ 

One of the noble and philanthropic institutions of this 
Christian country, of which the history is deeply interesting. 

As early as the year 1572, when the importation of negroes 
to the West Indies began to assume the character of a regular 



ANTI-SLAVERY SOCIETY. 



9 



trade, Cardinal Ximenes protested against it, as a sin against 
God and man; but his protest had little effect. Yarions 
other good men followed, especially in America, among the 
Friends, and it is worthy of record to their honour, that the 
first petition ever presented to the British Parliament on 
the subject of slavery emanated from them. Many eminent 
men at different times wrote on the subject — Eichard Baxter, 
John Wesley, George Whitfield, Bishop Porteous, and 
others. The three names most prominent as taking part in 
the struggle were Granville Sharp, Thomas Clarkson, and 
William Wilberforce. The attention of Mr. Sharp was 
especially attracted in 1765 by the case of a poor negro, 
whom his master had cast adrift in a state of disease in 
London. His deep sympathy was roused for the state of 
negroes generally ; and finally, by an action at law, to pre- 
vent a negro named Somerset from being forcibly dragged 
away by bis master, he procured from the Bench in 1772 the 
famous decision that, " when a slave puts his foot on English 
soil he is free." The interest of Mr. Clarkson was much 
called forth by gaining a prize essay at the University of 
Cambridge, when the Vice-Chan cellor proposed ''The Slave 
Trade." This kindled all the fire of his ardent nature, and 
he began to collect evidence from every person he could find 
in and about London who had been in Africa or the West 
Indies, or had any insight into the slave trade. The evidence 
he collected kindled the attention of Mr. Wilberforce, who 
joined the warfare with heart and soul. 

For twenty years did this noble band of philanthropists 
labour before the first great object at which they aimed was 
accomplished. Por seven years in succession was Mr. Wilber- 
force's motion for its abolition thrown out. But on January 
1, 1808, the Bill for the total abolition of the British slave 
trade passed both Houses of Parliament, and received the 
royal assent. 

To abolish the British slave trade was the first step ; the 
next was to abolish slavery. The difference between thtse 



10 



ANTI-SLAVERY SOCIETY. 



two is not always understood. By the first is meant traffic 
in human beings when torn away from their homes and 
country ; by the second, that state of servitude and bondage 
to which they are thereby reduced. 

The fiiends of the oppressed negro having won tlieir first 
battle, now organized their forces for the further conquest. 
Eut it was not till after another twenty-six years of arduous 
toil that their object was fully gained. Their raidvs were 
joined by the eminent Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton. The 
Anti-Slavery Society was formed. A spirit of violent opposi- 
tion was raised by interested persons, especially in the West 
Indies. But at last the nation rose en masse, and in 1831 
upwards of 25,000 petitions were presented to Parliament, and 
after two years more the victory was won. On August 1, 
1834, the Bill was passed, securing the freedom of all the 
slaves througliout the British Empire ; and £20,000,000 were 
granted to be divided amongst the proprietors as a com- 
pensation for the loss they had sustained. Eight hundred 
thousand slaves were then delivered from the galling yoke, 
and rejoicings were universal and devout for a victory so 
noble and so Christian. The emancipation was not completed 
until August 1, 1838, but from that day all were free. 

After this grand and noble triumph it might have been 
hoped that the African slave-trade had ceased to exist. 
Would that it were so. But other nations are not bound by 
British laws without mutual treaties, and therefore the work 
of the Anti-Slavery Association is still imperatively needed. 

It is not generally known how long slavery maintained its 
hold even in the land of liberty. " The last serfs in England," 
says Smiles, " were emancipated in the reign of Queen Eliza- 
beth ; but the last serfs in Scotland were not emancipated 
-until the reign of George III., at the end of last century. 
Before then, the cottiers and salters belonged to the soil. 
They were bought and sold with it ; they had no power to 
determine what their wages should be. Like the slaves in 
the southern states of America, they merely accepted such 



APPROPKIATION. 



11 



sustenance as was sufficient to maintain their muscles and 
sinews in working order." 

APPEOPEIATIOK 

An English groom was living in Paris, a very careless 
man, who had during a severe illness been led to see he was 
a sinner. He dared not die as he was. The clergyman who 
visited him got tired of coming, having told him all he him- 
self then knew of the way of salvation. But one Sunday 
afternoon the groom's daughter waited in the vestry after 
church, saying, " You must come once more, sir ; I cannot see 
my father again without you." " I can tell him nothing 
more," said the preacher; *^hut I can take the sermon I have 
just preached^ and read it to him." The dying man lay 
before as in anguish, thinking of his sins, and whither they 
must carry him. " My friend," said the clergyman, as he 
entered the room, I have come to read to you the sermon I 
have just preached. First, I shall tell you the text : * He 
was loounded for our transgressions.^ E'ow hear what I have 
said." ^'Hold," said the dying man, have it; read no 
more — * He Avas wounded for our transgressions.' He was 
wounded then for w?/ transgressions'? " Soon after he died, 
rejoicing in Christ's pardoning grace. The clergyman seemed 
at hearing this, and seeing the man's rejoicing faith, for the 
first time himself to apprehend the truth, and was soon 
led to appropriate it for himself. 

AEMY. 

The largest army of which we have any account in history 
is that of X^^rxes. According to the estimates of EolHn, 
which is founded on the statements of Herodotus, Isocrates, 
and Plutarch, it consisted of 1,700,000 foot, 80,000 horse, 
20.000 more for conducting the carriages and camels. In 
passing the Hellespont an addition was made to it from other 
nations of 300,000, which made his land force 2,100,000. 
His fleet consisted of 1207 vessels, each carrying 270 men. 



12 



ARMY. 



-vvhicli was increased by the European nations with 1200 
vessels carrying 240,000 men. Besides the Heet, the small 
galley ships, transport ships, &c., amounted to 3000, contain- 
ing about 240,0U0 men. Including servants, eunuchs, women, 
and others that generally follow an army, it is probable that 
Xerxes' entire force was between five and six million souls. 
Yet nearly the whole of this army was destroyed, and pro- 
bably only about 3000 escaped alive. What a moral is 
involved in such a fact ! 

The armies of Europe in 1881, as given in the * Almanack 
de Gotha' and other reliable works, comprise an aggregate 
of 3,860,045 men on the '^standnig army," and 12,454,867 
" as ^ standing army and reserves ' (with 1G76 war ships, and 
280,534 naval officers and men)." The army and navy esti- 
mates for the whole of Europe are for the year £1G0,078,G41, 
the total revenue of all the countries being £Gl'0,109,242, 
so that about one-fourth of the whole income of Europe is 
spent on the materials for war ! 

Eor Great Britain and Ireland the number of the army is 
reckoned for 1882 as 131^859, and the gross army estimates 
£17,726,828. 

Is it not melancholy to contrast so large an amount of 
money spent for the purposes of warfare, with the small sum 
comparatively, devoted to the moral and spiritual well-being 
of mankind] (See War.) 

The power of small armies to resist and overcome large 
hosts, has furnished many a lessr)n of courage and valour. 
In modern times Sir Charles Xapier's famous battle of 
Meeanie was a striking illustration. With 2000 men, of 
whom only 400 were Europeans, he encountered an army of 
35,000 hardy and well-trained Beloochees. It was an act, 
apparently, of the most daring temerity, but Sir Charles had 
full faith in himself and in his troops. He charge<l the 
Beloochee centre up a high bank, which formed their rampart 
in front, and for three hours the battle raged. Each man of, 
the small force, inspired by his chief, was for the time a hero. 



BAREENNESS. 



13 



The Beloochees, though twenty to one, were driven back, 
and the brave English were the victors. 

YoLUNTEERS. — It is surely no small honour to England, 
that no nation can compare with her in willingness to fight 
for her honour. In the list of all the countries of Europe 
where conditions of military service are given, Great Britain 
is the only nation where the condition is simply " Voluntary 
Enlistment. 

Besides our regular army, there is the noble band of militia, 
143,277 ; yeomanry, 14,458; and volunteers, ^ 246,362 — total 
404,097 men kept in training, and ready any moment to be 
called into active service. 

BAERE^TJSTESS. 

Perhaps it may be said, without fear of being mistaken, 
that nature is seldom, if ever, wholly barren ! Yet what a 
large part of the earth's surface is lying waste and unproduc- 
tive, so far as supplying the wants of man is concerned ! — the 
vast areas in every continent — of desert land in Africa, of ice- 
bound sterility in the far JSTorth, of snow-covered mountains, 
and of the wide stretch of moor and marsh ! Yet who has 
not heard of the tiny piece of moss, of extraordinary beauty, 
that so cheered the heart of Mungo Park in Africa, and of 
vegetable and animal life in the most unlikely places ] So 
is it many a time in the spiritual world. 

It is a fact not generally known, though true, that the ocean 
too, though so much richer in animal life than the land, has 
its deserts — desolate regions, as they are called by mariners, 
in wliich few signs of life are to be seen. In many maps such 
a region may be found laid down in the South Pacific between 
Patagonia and ISTew Zealand. Birds, that have followed a 
ship for weeks, seem to recognize this ocean desert, and fall 
away as soon as the ship enters it (see Dr. Chaplain's 'Bene- 
dicite '). 

Eeclaimixg waste lands has been one of the marks of 
national progress. Yast numbers of acres have been reclaimed 



BEGINNING. 



in England in the last fifty years. The changed aspect wrought 
upon such once barren spots, where formerly only dearth and 
desolation reigned, but now beauty and fertility, may well 
form a striking illustration of the blessings brought by the 
introduction of Christian missions into many a heathen land. 

I^early half of the land in the United Kingdom is still 
uncultivated. In 1871, out of the area of 77,000,000 acres, 
43,000,000 were reckoned as uncultivated and waste lands " 
(inchiding of course our cities and towns, mountains and 
forests, &c.). 

BEGINNIlSra 

Sir Isaac Newton used to say, tliat lie did not consider he 
had any advantage over other men, except that whatever 
he thought of sufficient im[)ortance to begin, he had suf- 
ficient resolution to continue until he had accomplished his 
object. 

BIEDS. 

People little think of the marvellous provision required for 
sustaining the animal creation. Take the myriads of birds, 
" The number of ditfereiit kinds of birds known to exist is 
four times greater than that of quadrupeds ; but it is the 
vast number of individuals, all provided for, that most causes 
our astonishment. Among the Rocky Mountains migrating 
pigeons are often seen moving in flocks more than a mile 
broad ; and although their speed probably exceeds a mile in 
a minute, three hours are sometimes spent before the long pro- 
cession has ended. At the mod^^rate estimate of two pigeons 
to each square yard, AuJubon calculates the number in one 
such flock to be 1,115,000,000 " (Dr. Chaplin). How are 
these myriads fed? and what a lesson it conveys on God's 
watchful care and kind provision for all His creatures ! An 
old writer well says, " He that feeds His ravens, will never 
starve His saints." 



BIBLE. 



15 



BIBLE— 

The Superioeity of. There are not more than eight 
great Book Eeligions in the world. But what are the rest 
compared with Christianity 1 (1) The Brahmins have their 
Yedas. (2) The Zoroastarians their Zendavesta. (3) The 
Buddhists their Tripetaka. (4) The Moslems the Koran. 
(5) The Confucians ^'The Five Kings" and "the Four 
Shu." (6) The Sikhs the Granth or the Volume. (7) The 
Jews the Old Testament. (8) The Christian Church the Holy 
Bible, the Old and I^ew Testaments. To these may perhaps 
be added the " Popuvah," a kind of picture-book of religion, 
recently discovered, which is believed to be the sacred book 
of the extinct races of the Mexicans. 

Compare the first six of these and their books, with Christi- 
anity and the Bible. !N"ot one of the books give any satis- 
factory account of the Creator of the world, the fall of man, 
how sin entered into the world ; none of them give any pure 
and elevating conception of the nature and character of God ; 
the portrait of any one like Jesus of JSTazareth ; any true 
account of an adequate remedy for a man's ruined state, nor 
of the unseen world and man's future destiny. ]N'or has any 
book ever been so widely translated and largely acknowledged 
as the cause of peace and happiness, as the Holy Scriptures. 

The population of the world is now believed to be about 
1,400,000,000, and for this it is estimated that about 
210,000,000 copies of the Scriptures have been provided in a 
printed form, or nearly one for every seven persons. But how 
have these copies been distributed 1 Protestant nations have 
received upwards of one-half the number, of which about 
90,000,000 have been in the languages spoken in great 
Britain and its dependencies ; and it is a distressing fact, that 
among 1,000,000,000 of Heathen, Jews, and Mahommedans, 
not more than 10,000,000 copies of the sacred volume have 
yet been circulated. 

A Contrast. It is well to remember the difference be- 
tween Christianity and Mahommedanism. One of the express 



16 



BIBLE TRANSLATIONS. 



enactments of the Koran is, that it should never he translated! 
Compare with this the precepts and spirit of the Christian 
Scriptures ! 

It is interesting to rememher the different periods at which 
the Bihle was translated into the vernacular languages of 
different countries. Of tlie earliest editions (though not per- 
haps the earliest) we may regard the Spanish, 1-478 ; German, 
1522; English, 1535 ; French, 1535 ; Danish, 1540 ; Swedish, 
1541 ; Dutch, 15G0; Eussian, 1581 ; Hungarian, 1589; Polish, 
1596 ; Turkish, 1G26; Modern Greek, 1G38; Irish, 1G85 ; 
Portuguese, 17G8; Manx, 1771; Italian, 177G; Bengalee, 
1801; Tartar, 1813; Persian, 1815; Chinese, 1820. 

The Bible and the English Constitution. 

It should never he forgotten, in the midst of all the in- 
fidelity of our day, that a copy of the Bible is still placed on 
the table of the Houses of Parliament ; the Bible is presented 
to the King or Queen when crowned as the head of this nation ; 
the Bible is still the book on which oaths are taken in our 
Courts of Law. 

BIBLE TRAXSLATIOXS. 

In modern times the gieat translators of the Bible have 
heen missionaries. The task of translating and spreading the 
Scriptures would never have been attem])ted by the trader, nor 
could it have been accomplished by the learned and devout 
at home; only missionaries, travelling in regions before 
unknown, could have done such a work, and the foremost of 
our missionaries have been foremost as translators. The 
Burmese version of Judson, the Persian of Henry Martyn, the 
Sanscrit of Carey, the Bechuana of Moffat, the Chinese of 
Morrison, the Arabic of Van Dyck, all are monuments of the 
highest talents and most patient perseverance. 

At the beginning of the present century there were trans- 
lations of the Scriptures existing in nearly all the languages 
of Europe, a few of Asia and Africa, and four of countries 
lying beyond. Many of these were very imperfect. Since 



BIBLE TRANSLATIONS. 



17 



1804, Avhen the great Britisliand Foreign Bible Society began, 
its noble work, new translations have been made in no less 
than 250 languages. Different societies have contributed to 
this grand result. So far as can be ascertained, the British and 
Foreign Bible Society has published or helped to publish new 
versions in 191 languages directly, and 59 indirectly, the 
American Bible Society in 41, the National Bible Society of 
Scotland in 5, the Bible Translation Society in 14, the Society 
for Promoting Christian Kjiowledge in 17 or more, the Trini- 
tarian Bible Society in 3, the [N'etherland Bible Society in 11, 
the Societies of Germany in 9, of Switzerland in 9, and of 
Denmark, iN'orway, and Sweden in 6. 

Many of these translations extend only to a part of the 
Scriptures. The entire Bible has been rendered during the 
present century in about 55 languages, the iN'ew Testament 
in 84, and parts only in 87. 

If any wonder that the work should in so many cases be 
incomplete, they little understand the immense difficulty of 
making a translation of the whole Bible, especially in such 
languages as the African or Chinese. The years of constant 
labour it cost the translators of many of the versions, need not 
surprise one. The version of Judson of Burmah occupied 19 
years in preparation ; the Bengalee of Dr. Carey at least 15 
years ; the Tahitian 20 years ; the Arabic 16 years. And can 
we wonder 1 Let any one try to turn even a single Gospel 
into a familiar language like French or German, and then 
imagine the position of men like Eliot or Moffat, who had to 
note down phonetically the words used by the natives, mould 
them by figures into a written language, and cast into that 
rough mould the spiritual conceptions of the Bible ! — ^in some 
languages of Africa, e. g., perhaps finding a dozen words for 
to murder, as mother, child, or other relation is concerned, 
but no word for gratitude or affection, much less for love, 
atonement, righteousness, and such like. 

The English Bible. How beautiful are the words of our 
translators in speaking of the great importance of their work, — 

c 



18 



BIBLE TRANSLATIONS. 



It is translation that openetli the window to let in the light, 
that removeth the cover of the well that we may come to the 
water, even as Jacob rolled away the stone from the mouth 
of the well." 

It is an interesting coincidence to note, how much we owe 
in the great work of our English Bible translation, to North 
countrymen. Not to mention the venerable Bede, on the 
banks of the Yarrow, translating the Gospel of St. John; 
Wycliife, the first translator of the New Testament into 
English, ''the morning star of the Reformation,'' was born in 
the village which bears his name, about ten miles from Rich- 
mond ; Tyndale, the lirst to print the New Testament, though 
he himself was not born in Yorkshire, but at Ledbury in 
Gloucestershire, was of a Yorkshire family; Coverdale, the 
first to print the whole Bible in English, was also born in 
Yorkshire. His name re})resents one of the lovely dales of 
that beautiful county. Wyclifie and Coverdale lived about 
twenty miles apart. 

Luther's translatiox of the Bible was, as is well-known, 
one of the most important events of the great Reformation ; 
the singular providence of God by which he was conlined in 
Wai'tbiirg Castle was very remarkable in giving him t'umi for 
so great a work. The history of his translation is very inter- 
esting. On September 21, 1552, the complete clition of 
three thousand copies appeared, in 2 vols, folio. The simple 
title was ' The New Testament — German — Wittemberg.' It 
bore no hnman name, though it did more than human work. 
In a short time all the copies were sold ; a second edition 
appeared within three months after the first, and by 1553, 
in eleven years, seventeen editions had been printed at 
Wittemburg, thirteen at Augsburg, twelve at Basle, one at 
Erfurt, one at Geneva, one at Leipsic, thirteen at Strasburg, 
making in all fifty-ei,^^ht editions ; and if we assign these an 
average of three thousand copies, we have a circulation of no 
less than one hundred and seventy-four thousand copies of 
the Word of Life, as one work of the great Reformer's life. 



BIBLE SOCIETIES. 



19 



Tlie history of the original copy of the Yulgate, which 
Lufclier used, is also interesting. The director of a little water- 
ing-place in Bohemia was recently discovered to be its 
po^sessor, and the authorities of the University of Leipsic 
came forward, and offered the sum of 15,000 marks (£750) 
for it. The margin of each page is filled with glosses and 
marks, evidently in Luther's own handwriting. 

It is a striking coincidence that now, whilst the revision 
of our English Bible is proceeding in our own country and 
America, a similar work has been going on in Germany of 
late years, to revise the great standard version of Martin 
Luther, and is expected to be complete and published in a 
few years. 

It is also remarkable that in the very room where Luther 
began his great translation three hundred and fifty-six years 
ago, may be now found at work a band of colporteurs 
assembled for conference from time to time, as to the best 
means of circulating the thousands of Bibles now every year 
spread abroad in Germany. 

BIBLE SOCIETIES. 

The oldest Society instituted for printing and selling 
Bibles is the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 
which commenced its work in 1698. ISText to it was the 
Caustein Institution, founded at Halle in 1712, which has 
acted as feeder to the German Bible societies of more recent 
dates. The ISTaval and Military Bible Society began in 1780 ; 
the Sunday School Bible Society, 1785; French Bible Society, 
1792; the British and Foreign Bible Society, 1804. Since 
then many other similar societies have been established. The 
Basle Society was founded in the same year. The Swedish and 
Eussian Societies in 1809 and 1812 respectively, and the 
American Bible Society, which combined about sixty smaller 
Institutions, previously founded in 1817. The British and 
Foreign Bible Society stands at the head of these, having now 
about 6,100 branches at home and in the colonies, and 

c 2 



20 



BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY. 



having spent about £9,000,000 in the spread of the Word of 
Life. The American Bible Society comes next, with 2000 
branches, and an expenditure of nearly £4,000,000. The 
]N"ational Society of ScotLand tliird, with 230 branches, and an 
outlay since 1862 of £150,000. 

BIBLE SOCIETY— BEITISH AXD FOREIGK 
'*Tiie grandest conception that ever entered the mind of 
man, since Apostolic times " {Earl of Shaft eshury). 

Origin. The origin of the great Bible Society has so 
often been told, that it seems needless to reproduce it. It 
has lately been described in a most grapliic little book pub- 
lished by the Bible Society, entitled ' From the Beginning, or. 
The Story of Mary Jones and lier Bible,' collected from the 
best materials, and retold by M. A. R At the end of last 
century scarcely any Bibles were to be had in Wales. Mary 
Jones, the daughter of Jacob and lly Jones, two God- 
fearing people, living in the obscure village of Llanfthangel, 
at the foot of Cader Idris, was a good and most intelligent 
child, who used to attend the preaching at a neighbouring 
house. As she listened, the Blessed Truth arrested her 
attention, and the desire laid hold of her mind to read the 
Bible for herself. But she could not read, had no Bible, nor 
money to buy one. The history of her early struggles to 
obtain a copy of the Scriptures forms a tale of most thrilling 
interest ; how she learned to read by the help of a village 
school, getting up earlier every morning not to neglect her 
share of the house-work ;* how she walked two miles every 
Saturday and read the Bible at a farmer's house ; how she saved 
up every penny she could gain to enable her to obtain the 
coveted treasure ; and how at last, after six years of learning 
and saving, she had got together a sufficient sum to procure 
the object of her desire. The Eev. Thomas Charles of Bala 
was the only clergyman in the neighbourhood, from whom a 
Bible could be got. It was a walk of twenty-five miles to 
his house, but one bright morning in 1802, Mary Jones 



BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY. 



21 



started, barefoot and alone, her heart filled with hope, and 
her eyes sparkling with delight. The story goes on to 
describe the keenness of her bitter disappointment, when told 
by Mr. Charles that he had no Eible to dispose of ; every 
copy he had (and they were few) had been promised 
long ago, and the Society that supplied Wales hitherto now 
decJined to print any more. But so touching a story reached 
the kind man's heart, and mingling his tears with hers, he 
rose from his seat, saying, My dear child, I see you must 
have a Bible, difficult as it is for me to spare you one. It is 
impossible, yes, simply impossible to refuse you." 

By this touching incident the large and loving heart of 
Mr. Charles was stirred. Going up to London, he resolved to 
lay the matter before certain Christian friends, particularly the 
friends of the Eeligious Tract Society. By a striking coinci- 
dence, the first friend he met was Mr. Tarn (the father of Mr. 
Joseph Tarn, for so many years the Society's cashier), and they 
talked the matter over. At the next Committee meeting of 
the Society, Mr. Charles was introduced, Dec. 7, 1802 ; a deep 
feeling of sympathy was called forth by his touching story and 
wise proposal, and after the ordinary business of the Tract 
Society was finished, the organization of a Bible Society, 
not for Wales only, but for the whole world, was at once 
resolved on. 

On March 7, 1804, the British and Foreign Bible Society 
was first formed, at a meeting held in the London Tavern. 
It was planned in the quaint counting-house of Mr. Joseph 
Hard castle, a Eussian merchant, in old Swan Stairs, on the 
banks of the Thames (the old building is still standing) ; 
having as its noble object to print and circulate the Holy 
Bible in whole and in part, without note or comment, through- 
out the whole world. 

Progress and work. The history of the work done by this 
great society, with all its deeply interesting incidents, would 
fill many volumes. When it began its work in 1804, it was 
estimated that there were not more than 5,000,000 copies of 



22 BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY. 



the Bible in existence ; since it began, its issues have been in- 
creasing every year. In 1883 tliey reached the large number 
of 2,964,636, while the total issue from the beginning of the 
work amounts to 96,917,629 copies. If to tliis be added the 
work of kindred Foreign Bible Societies, most of which are 
or have been aided by the British and Foreign Bible Society, 
a total of over 160,000,000 copies will have been distributed 
since 1804. 

Again, at the beginning of th.e century the Bible only was 
known to exist in about 56 different languages. In 1883 
this Society circulated the precious Book in 250 languages or 
dialects; the number of versions it distributes is 315, since in 
many countries there are more than one. In our own United 
Kingdom we require six dillerent languages — English, Welsh, 
Gaelic, Irish, ]\Ianx, French (for the Channel Islands). In 
France several dillerent dialects are spoken, as in Russia, &c. 
In India the Society distributes translations in above sixty 
dillerent dialects. 

In about 190 of these the translation has been made ia 
the present century. 

One of the greatest benefits conferred by the Bible Society 
has been to make the Bible so easily accessible to all. The 
costliness of the precious Word has often been referred to. 
It cannot be wondered at, in the early days, when copies were 
multiplied by hand, and when few could afforii to buy, and 
fewer still be found to read them. In the days of Edward IV. 
the cost of a Bible was £40, equal to nearly £400 sterling 
now. Up to the beginning of the present century it was 
still comparatively an expensive book, and as stated above, 
only to be procured in a small i.umljer of languages. 
By the noble work of this great society, a copy of the 
whole Bible may now be had at a price so low, that the 
poorest can no longer find it beyond their means, and may 
still further be obtained in a large proportion of the lan- 
guages of the whole world. The whole Bible may be had in 
English for sixpence^ the Xew Testament for twopence, and 



BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY. 



23 



one of the Gospels or Epistles, or the Book of Psalms, for 
one penny. 

The EXTENT OF THE WORK may be put down more easily in 
figures than apprehended adequately by the mind. The field 
is the world." and the amount of seed sown each year, and the 
results following, are larger as the work advances. The issue 
of the Scriptures in 1882-3, in whole or in part, numbered 
2,964,636, and the total amount sent forth since the commence- 
ment is 96,917,629 copies; of these 47,000,000 have been 
taken by the English-speaking people, 12,000,000 by Ger- 
mans, 9,000,000 by the French, leaving only 26,000,000 for all 
the rest of the world. This is without taking into account 
the 62,000,000 copies issued by other Bible Societies. 

It may give some idea of the vastness of the work when the 
calculation is remembered, that at the present rate of issue 
nearly 10,000 copies are issued every day of the year, except 
Sunday. Reckoning twelve hours in the working day, this 
gives an average of about 833 every hour, and over 13 every 
minute ; or taking the whole 24 hours, between 6 and 7 every 
minute, day and night, all through the week. 

The Bible house of the American Bible Society is capable 
of issuing 2,000,000 copies, or about 6000 copies every work- 
ing day, 600 every hour, or 10 every minute. 

Or again, suppose all the 96,000,000 could be put side by 
side, and they only measured on an average one inch each 
across the back, they would require a shelf upwards of 1480 
miles in length to hold them ! 

Or, if all the books could be weighed, and on an average 
they weighed only half-a-pound each, the weight would be 
upwards of 20,950 tons. 

Or again, if any one were disposed to count them, and were 
to count 60 a minute for ten hours a day, and for six days 
in the week, it would require no less than eight years and a 
quarter before the work was finished ! 

The OPERATIONS of this great society are now carried on in 
a variety of ways. The system of Auxiliaries, Branches, and 



24 BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY. 



Associations began very early in its history. There are now 
about 5000 in the kingdom. 

The juvenile branches were commenced in 1812, the 
Ladies' Association in 1811, preceded by the Aberdeen 
Female Servants' Association in 1809. The first meeting in 
Exeter Hall was held in 1831, and was signalized among other 
things by the attendance of ladies for the first time. The 
important system of colportnge was first introduced in 1845, 
and has proved one of the most vahiahle adjuncts of the 
Society. The Society is employing now about 300 in Europe, 
and 200 in the rest of the world. The magnitude of the 
work may be inferred from the fact that for the benefit of 
France, Germany, Austria, and Eussia, the benevolent work 
of the Society, in the various departments, involves an annual 
expenditure of over £10,000 beyond the amount received from 
Scriptures sold. 

Income. Like the issues, has been steadily increasing. 
The first year (1805) the income was <£G91 ; the fourth year 
£14,000. The free contributions in 1883 reached the sum 
of £112,428, including sums sent not only from our own 
country, but from all quarters of the globe. The total amount 
spent from the beginning has been over £9,000,000, to which 
other large sums must be added. The noble building, now the 
Society's Depot, was built by voluntary subscriptions, not a 
farthing towards which was taken from the ordinary income. 

It was a striking proof of the hearty good-will of the Juve- 
nile Branches of the Society, that in 18GG and 18G7 the 
young people of Yorkshire collected upwards of £1300 to- 
wards the erection of this beautiful Depot ; and the Sunday 
Schools and young friends in the principality of Wales pre- 
sented nearly £1000 towards the same object, the two to- 
gether defraying about a twentieth part of the whole expense. 

Upwards of £1000 has been sent to the Society every year 
for the last eight years as a payment for Scriptures, from the 
South Sea Islands alone. 

The service rendered to missionary work. The Bible 



BRITISH AND FOllEIGN BIBLE SOCIETY. 



25 



Society is the great means of supplying the seed, which 
it is the province of the Protestant Missionary Societies to 
sow, throughout the world. The venerable Society for the 
Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts require to use 
the Scriptures in about twenty languages ; nearly all these 
can be procured from the Bible Society, and fourteen of them 
from it alone, with one or two exceptions, for which the 
American Bible Society must be appealed to. The Church 
Missionary Society use about forty different translations, nearly 
all of which are obtained from the Bible Society. Thus there 
are, in round numbers, about sixty languages in which the 
Holy Scriptures are used by the Church of England in her 
mission work, and in about four-fifths of these, integral por- 
tions of the Word of God can be obtained only through this 
means. So of ISTon conformist bodies, the London Missionary 
Society have about fifteen different languages, some of which 
are of recent grammatical formation; the Wesleyan Missionary 
Society about thirty, including European languages; and all 
these are supplied directly or indirectly by the Bible Society. 
The Baptist Missionary Society, though no longer dependent 
on the Society, yet receive help in printing parts of the Old 
Testament in some Indian languages, and elsewhere ; while the 
Missionaries of the American Baptist Society have been largely 
assisted in the printing of some of their versions. 

Thus it was that the Eev. Henry Yenn, the chief secretary 
of the largest Missionary Society in the world, said in his old 
age, " When I was a young man, I used to think of the Bible 
Society as the handmaid of Missionary Societies ; but I now 
think that she is ' the Queen's daughter, all glorious within,' 
and the Missionary Societies are * the virgins, her companions 
that bear her company.' 

In no great society is the wonderful Providence of God 
more remarkably discernible than in the history of the work 
of the British and Foreign Bible Society, as, e.g., in the time 
of its formation. As the invention of printing just preceded 
the great Eef ormation, so just before the Bible Society was set 



26 



BRITISH AND FOIIEIGN BIBLE SOCIETY. 



on foot, the art of stereotype printing was commenced, which 
so wonderfully helped to promote the rapidity of increasing 
copies. It was the time too when all our great Missionary 
Societies were commencing their glorious work, and needed 
its hel^J to supply them with the Word of Life. 

Even the materials for printing and the place of printing 
have a strange " romance of history." Tiiere need be no 
better answer to the taunts of inli ielity than the liistory of 
Bible printing. Take the exami)le of Voltaire, who died 
A.D. 1718. Among the last words he spoke were words of 
liorriblu mockery against the blessed Douk. In a hundred 
years," he said, tlie Bible will be a book only to be known 
to be derided as an imposture !" What has been the fact] 
After Voltaire's death the printing press wliich lie used for 
printing liis infidel books was bought and used to print the 
very Bible he had abused! whilst in 1^78, the year of the 
Paris Exliibition, the nuniber of Bibles circulated was the 
largest ever known in France. 

The estate which Gibbon, the sceptical historian, possessed 
in Switzerland is now held by one of his descendants, who 
spends most of his income in propagating the Gospel wliich 
Gibbon sought to undernnne. The room in which Hume 
lived in Edinburgh was used to hold the first Bible Society 
meeting that met in that city. So, too, how remarkable is 
the fact that the place where the Society's great depot stands, 
Elackfriars in London, as the name imports, is the place 
where the monks and friars were wont in ancient days to 
preach against the general reading of the Scriptures ; just as 
the Eeligious Tract Society's depot in Paternoster Pow 
stands upon the spot where Fisher, Bishop of Pochester, 
preached publicly against an open Bible, and a number of 
New Testaments were publicly burned. Or, to take particular 
places, the principality of Wales is most full of the romance 
of incidents in connection with Bible Society work. It was 
here, as is well-known, that the Society had its cradle. Here 
the first great craving for a supply was felt, and here the 



BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY. 



27 



demand was first partially supplied. It was a time of long and 
anxious waiting. The Society for Promoting Christian Know- 
ledge had up to that time published the only "Welsh version 
in use ; but on the application to print a new edition, it de- 
clined, having no funds available for the purpose. The first 
supply was obtained from the Bible Society, and never was 
any supply of Bibles received with greater enthusiasm. Mr. 
Charles records, that when the vehicle laden with Bibles was 
drawing near, the people went out in a body, took out the 
horses, and drew it themselves to the market-place, where the 
contents were distributed with wild enthusiasm. 

Is it not a striking coincidence, in connection with such a 
history, that no infidel book has ever yet been published in 
Welsh? and that scarcely any Popery exists in the Principality? 
It is worthy of note too, that in proportion to the population, 
there is scarcely any place where the free contributions are 
greater to the Society. In the Isle of Anglesea, one of the 
poorest parts, where there is no great town, no manufactory, 
a vigorous branch has been established. Taking the country 
generally, a contribution of twopence each person is considered 
to be good ; in the Isle of Anglesea in 1879 they sent up 
£8000 to the Bible Society and £2350 to the Society for 
Promoting Christian Knowledge, or fourpence each for every 
man, woman, and child in the place. It is further remarkable 
that Wales presents the rare example of a country where the 
supply of Bibles is greater than the inhabitants, and yet the 
demand still continues undiminished ! The Bible Society has 
issued 2,000,000 of Bibles and Testaments during the present 
century in Wales. 

The Irishman and the priest. A Eomish priest was 
saying one day to a poor peasant, " How wrong it is to read 
the Bible, especially for the poor." " But,'' answered the 
man, " the Blessed Saviour said, ' Search the Scriptures,' and 
may I ask your Eeverence a question % I was reading a day 
or two ago that it said, ^ Ye shall read it to your children,' 
and the priests have no children ; how do you account for 



28 



BLESSINGS. 



thatl " " Ah ! but/' said the priest, " the likes of you cannot 
understand it." " Well/' said the man, ^' if I cannot under- 
stand it, it Avill do me no harm ; and if I can understand 
it, it must do me great good." 

The power of the word. Sir Bartle Frere, in his essay 
on Indian Missions, gives an account Avhich he knew was 
most carefully investigated, ^vliere all tlie inhabitants of a 
remote village in the Deccan ha<l abjured idolatry and caste, 
removed from their temples all the idols which had been 
worshipped time out of mind, and agreed to profess a form 
of Christianity which they had gathered for themselves, 
from a careful perusal of a single gospel and a few tracts ! 
These had not been given them by any missionary, but had 
been casually left with some clothes and other cast-ofE 
property by a merchant, wh<jse name had been forgotten, 
and who had given them to his servant. 

BLESSINGS. 

" There are three requisites," says Mrs. Hannah Moore, 
"to the proper enjoyment of earthly blessings: a thankful 
reflection on the goodness of the givdr, a deep sense of our 
own un worthiness, and recollection of the uncertainty of 
long possessing them. The first would make us grateful, the 
second humble, and the third moderate." 

The right use of the sails. I could never under- 
stand," said a child to her father, " how the same wind can 
take ships in such different directions. Here goes one in 
towards the port, and there is another steering out to sea." 
The father answered, It depends upon the position of the 
sails;" and added, it is mu'jh the same with men in the 
-world as with ships at sea.'' 

BLIND. 

By the Census of 1851 (the first registration of the exact 
number), there were in Great Britain and Ireland 27,074 
blind persons; in 1861, 29,051 ; in 1871, 31,159, so in- 



BLIND. 



29 



creasing about 2000 each, decade. In 1851 there were 10 blind 
persons to every 10,000 of the population. The proportion 
was found to differ greatly in different counties : in Suffolk? 
13; IS'orfoIk, 13; Lancashire, 9 ; Cheshire, 8; West Eiding 
of Yorkshire, 8 ; Essex, 9. There are now about 3000 blind 
persons in London alone. The whole number in the world 
is estimated at about 3,000,000. In many foreign countries 
the proportion is much, larger than in England — in Arabia 1 
in every 600, in China 1 in every 400, in Egypt it is 1 to 
every 100. 

Hospitals for. The earliest institution for the blind that 
can be traced was founded by St. Louis, a.d. 1260, at Paris, for 
the soldiers who had lost their sight in the Crusades, but 
they contained no provision for their instruction. In Paris 
the idea was first started of teaching them to read by raised or 
embossed characters, by Valentine Haiiy. The first asylum for 
the blind in this country was commenced at Liverpool in 
1790. 

The school for the Indigent Blind at St. George's Fields, 
Southwark (the largest and richest in the kingdom), was 
commenced 1799. Since then, between fifty and sixty similar 
institutions have been formed. An important college for the 
education of the blind sons of gentlemen was established at 
Worcester in 1866, which has fully proved the intellectual 
capacity of the blind. Since its commencement it has sent 
to our universities nine blind students, who have obtained, by 
open competition, six scholarships and other prizes, and five 
first classes in the London schools of theology, classics, 
philosophy, and jurisprudence. Five of these gentlemen, after 
leaving the university, have honourably settled in life, three 
being in holy orders ; a fourth will soon be a solicitor, a fifth 
a Fellow of Durham University, and second master of a blind 
college. 

Colour Blindness. By experiments lately made by the 
Opbthalmotological Society of the United Kingdom, it was 
ascertained that out of 18,000 persons, 750 were more or less 



30 



BLOOD OF CHRIST. 



affected witli colour "blindneps ; tlie chief colours tliey were 
unable to distinguish being red and green. The proportion 
of men were twelve times greater than of women, and the 
poor were more subject to it th ni the rich. 

Help for the blind. Moon's system of reading by 
raised and embossed characters has been perhaps the greatest 
boon ever given to the blind. More than thii'ty years' ex- 
perience has proved its value. It lias now been adapted to 
250 languages and dialects, and is used by more than 10,000 
readers, of which more than half the number are over fifty 
years of age, and some even at the advanced age of ninety. 
Dr. Moon was himself blind, the master of tlie school for the 
blind at Brighton. 

At a tea-party given to the indigent blind in the north of 
London a short time ago, Dr. Moon said, When I became 
blind, people condoled with my mother in the heavy loss 
which she had sustained. They were wrong. God gave me 
blindness as a talent to be used for His glory. Without blind- 
ness I should never have been able to see, as I have seen, the 
needs of the blind." 

M. Braille's system of writing has been also an unspeak- 
able boon, by which the blind are enabled to correspond with 
one another, and enjoy all the advantages of the pen. 

BLOOD OF CHRIST. 

Bishop Hamilton of Salisbury. It was a touching testi- 
mony given by him at his death ; during his last illness his 
mind was at times clouded by distracting fears as to his accept- 
ance. He failed to grasp, partly from having been involved 
so much in controversy about the Church of Eome, in all its 
simplicity, the grand truth of justification only by faith 
through the righteousness of Christ. , He thought rather of 
the sacraments of the Church as providing the means of real 
union with Christ, and aimed at a perfect repentance " as a 
ground of assurance. But as the end drew nigh, he was 
enabled to realize the simplicity of gospel truth. On the 



BODY. 



31 



morning of tlie last day he said, " The only thing I want is, 
to place my whole confidence more and more perfectly in the 
precious Blood." Among the last words he uttered were, 
" Bright, bright,'' as if light were already opening to the eye 
of his soul, full of the beauty and glory of heaven. 

Hedley Yicars. Most persons have read how Hedley Yicars 
first found, as it were accidentally, in the railway station, the 
power of the gracious words, The blood of Jesus Christ His 
Son cleans eth us from all sin." He thought, Is that word true 1 
Is that true to vie ? Does the blood of Jesus Christ wash out 
all my stain Then I resolve I will henceforth live as a man 
who has been washed in the blood of Jesus Christ. 

BODY. 

How little we think of the wonders of the human body, 
especially of its involuntary action. Take one example only. 
Not counting the steps of the feet, the work of the hands, 
the action of the eyes, and all the marvellous machinery 
which set in motion the muscles of so singular a frame, take 
the fact that the busy beating heart thumps 1,000,000,000 
times without stopping during the threescore and ten years of 
our life ; it propels to the utmost extremity of toe and finger 
half-a-million of tons of blood, each stroke representing a force 
of thirteen pounds. 

In an article on ' The Body's Income and Expenditure,' in 
'Knowledge,' a short time ago, it is said, ^*It has been 
calculated, that the daily force expended by an adult in 
maintaining its temperature and heat for the work of heart, 
lungs, &c. in its muscular acts, may be set down at 3400 
foot tons. In other words, the daily life of man summed 
up in one huge lift, would be capable of raising 3400 tons a 
foot high." 

The average weight of an adult, according to M. Quetelet, 
is 1401bs. 6oz. The skeleton consists of 254 bones, connected 
together by about 180 joints. The outer skin of a full-grown 
man is covered with about 7,000,000 pores, while the united 



32 



BONDAGE. 



length of the spiral vessels connected with them is reckoned 
at 28 miles. 

Diseases. Dr. Eichardson, in his * Diseases of Modera 
Life/ says there are about two hundred and fifty diseases to 
which the human body is liable, and about one hundred in 
full operation. Strange that a harp of thousand strings 
shoidd keep in tune so long." Dr. Richardson gives it as 
his ojDinion, "that though mmy diseases have appeared at 
different times, and been known by different names, yet 
through the whole of the known period of human existence 
on the earth, not one new disease has been added nor one 
withdrawn." 

The first great test of man was through the body. It has 
often been asked, Why was it that our first parents were not 
tested by some higher and worthier triall Many answers have 
been given. But perhaps the best is, that that test was a 
symbolic one. It was a temptiition through the body, which 
was symbolic of what should be the case with the whole race 
afterwards. 

The Eev. C. Simeon. " I remember Mr. Simeon," wrote 
good Eishup Mcllvaine, " when once he had a fall from his 
horse, stretching out one limb after another and re-dedicating 
it to God. It was his first thought, *ye are not your own.' " 

BONDAGE. 

In the Eevolution, when the people seized the Bastille 
to set free the prisoners, there were sixteen found in the 
dungeons beneath the prison. One man had been thirty 
years confined in the Bastille, and when liberated, having 
lost all interest in the outer world, his relatives and friends 
all lost to him, he begged earnestly to be taken back again, 
which was done, though he was put in a better and more 
comfortable position. He died a few years after. All the 
prisoners were set free ; some were stupefied, some were 
grateful, but all seemed puzzled and amazed. 

*^Are your handcuffs taken off]" — A gentleman 



BREAD. 



33 



travelling with a policeman, who had charge of a handcuffed 
prisoner, began to talk to him. " Have you brought your 
prisoner far ] " Oh yes, sir — from Glasgow." After speak- 
ing of the effects which crime and sin bring men to, the 
good man brought home to the policeman and his fellow- 
travellers the question, " But are your handcuffs taken off 1 
The devil binds his victim with far stronger chains than those 
you see here." 

BEEAD. 

The value of the bread consumed annually in the United 
Kingdom is now estimated at about £70,000,000, or, on 
an average, <£2 125. 6<i. for every man, woman, and child. 
Mr. Caird estimates the value of the butter and cheese at 
£35,000,000, and of the milk at £30,000,000. 

Pkicb. How little our poor people think of the thankful- 
ness they ought to feel, for being able to buy a cheap loaf." 
It is curious to see what the price of bread has been even 
within the present century. In 1800 the quartern loaf was 
17^6?., and for a few weeks as much as 22^d,; in 1805, 12^d.] 
1810, 15-|-d; 1812, 21^d. ; 1814, 121^^,; 1820, Ud. ; 1830, 
lO^d.; 1840, 9d.; 1854, Ud. ; 1867, lO^d, ; 1870, 7d We 
spend about £60,000,000 for foreign grain and flour imported 
every year. 

"Waste not, want not" is a good maxim, but little 
practised. Mr. G. C. T. Bartley, the secretary of the ]N'ational 
Penny Bank, has published a calculation about the waste of 
bread. He says, " One ounce is but a little piece of bread ; 
let each of your readers weigh it out ; yet an ounce of bread 
wasted in each household in England and Wales, means 
about 25,000,000 quartern loaves, the produce of 30,000 acres 
of wheat, and enough to feed annually 100,000 people. The 
same with smaU scraps of meat, an ounce a week represents 
300,000 sheep. Saving the bread and meat from waste is 
the same as producing the same amount more at home." 

The BEEAD-FRUiT tree of the South Sea Islands. Most 

D 



81 



BURDENS. 



persons have read of this wonderful tree, which forms the 
support of many of those gems of the ocean. The six seasons 
into which the year is there divided are named respectively 
after the kind of tliis fruit that then ripens, for the different 
species continue to hear almost the whole year round. The 
value of tlie tree is well suhstantiated by travellers. Not 
only has the fruit the appearance of a loaf of bread, but 
when baked wliole, it forms an excellent substitute for it. 
A native is considered well off if he possesses oidy two 
trees of the bread-fruit, as they will supply him with food 
all the year round. In its perennial value, it may furnish 
an apt emblem of Christ, " the Eread of Life," " the True 
Eread." 

BURDENS. 

Johnny, don't you think you have got as much as you can 
carry ] " said Frank to his brotlier, who was standing with 
open arms, receiving tlie bundles his father placed upon them. 
You've got more than you can carry." 

Never miml," said Johnny, in a burst of childlike trust, 
father laiotcs how much I can carry." 
Great cares are nothing to great sins; there is a great 
dillerence between care and trouble. 

Little cares are generally more trying than large ones, 
because we try to bear them in our own strength. 

CARELESSNESS. 

It would be a strange book, or rather a strange series of 
books, if a tolerably fair record could be made, of even some 
of the results of carelessness amongst our people that come 
to light. 

Letters. In 1S80 more than 27,000 letters were posted 
without any address ; of which 5000 contained no clue to the 
writers, and 1340 contained articles to the value of £5010. 
The use of too fragile covers caused the escape of 30,000 
articles. 



CHARITY. 



85 



The number of articles lost in travelling too ! 

The property destroyed by children being allowed to 
play with lucifer matches (see Children), 

From the returns of the Metropolitan Police, it appears 
that in 1879 the police found 25,259 doors and windows 
open or insecurely fastened at night in London. Can we 
wonder that robberies are frequent ! 

CHAEITY. 

In London alone it is computed the annual amount con- 
tributed to puhlic institutions is about £3,000,000, and in 
private benevolence about £7,000,000. London contains, 
it is said, a larger degraded population in proportion than any 
other place. One million of people in London receive medi- 
cal advice gratuitously every year. 

Probably the largest part of our most philanthropic heroes 
have not been rich men. John Pound, the founder of Eagged 
Schools; John Eaikes, who established Sunday Schools; 
Thomas Wright, the prison philanthropist, were none of them 
rich ; nor was St. Vincent de Paul and Pather Matthew, the 
promoters of education and temperance, nor many of our 
greatest missionaries — Xavier, Carey, Livingstone, &c. 

Christianity. In the preface to the late M. de Lief da's 
admirable work on 'The Charities of Europe,' he says, '*I 
have always been of opinion, that nowhere would a better 
proof of the Divine origin of Christianity and of the truth of 
the gospel be found, than in the story, simply told, of some 
charitable institutions. Whatever the Christian religion may 
apparently have in common with other religions, this much is 
certain, that true self-denying charity, which seeks the lost, 
loves the poor, and consoles the sufferer, is exclusively its 
own. There never were such things known in heathendom, 
however civilized, nor were they ever known in Israel, before 
He appeared, who taught His people to love their enemies, 
and to exercise charity towards the harlot, the publican, 
and the sinner.'' 

D 2 



36 



CHEERFULNESS. 



* J^o, T CANXOT AFFORD to give it, but I can afford to sacri- 
fice it," — the noble words of Sarah jNIartin, the poor needle- 
woman, whose name is so illustrious, when asked if she could 
afford the time she devoted to visiting the sick and needy. 

Prayer before givixg. In one of the Rev. E. Knill's 
journeys through the country, he attended a missionary 
meeting, and pleaded with his usual earnestness. Next 
morning a man came to see him. Sir," said he, " I was 
last night at the missionary meeting, and heard you speak, 
and I felt ashamed. I have long been a professing Christian, 
and yet have never given anything to speak of for such a work. 
I am now in good health and strength. I have saved £10, 
and waTit to give it to the mission work." 

^Ir. K. asked, " Does your wife know of this]" 
iS^o. She is not a godly woman, and always opposes 
such things." 

" Then," said ls\v. Knill, I cannot accept it in tliat way. 
It would only bring tri)ul)le in your house. But take my 
advice : go home, speak to her kindly and gently, and ask her 
to pray with you for five minutes over a certain thing which 
you are anxious to do. Say, I want your permission, and I 
will not do it without your consent. Don't be afraid, but be 
very aflectionate and kind." 

He did so, and to his surprise he came back to Mr. Knill, 
saying, " Well, sir, I certainly am surprised. My wife 
always opposed such things, but I did as you advised, and 
she gave her consent, and here is the money ; and may the 
Lord graciously accept it." 

CHEERFULISrESS. 

''The bright weather of the heart" should be cul- 
tivated. ''The habit of receiving things cheerfully, and of 
thinking about life hopefully, may be made to grow up in us 
like any other habit " (Smiles), 

Exactness in little duties is a wonderful help to cheerfulness. 

*' Smile on me." '* What can I do for youl " said a nurse 



CHILDREN. 



87 



as slie passed by a poor suffering child in an hospital. The 
only request the child made as the nurse passed so frequently 
by her bed was, " Smile on me." 

" [Rever sit down to nurse a grief; in all lifers duties seek 
relief. 

The study of natural history," Smiles has said, " more 
than any other branch of science, seems to be accompanied 
by unusual cheerfulness and equanimity of temjDer on the 
part of its votaries ; the result of which is, that the life of 
naturalists is on the whole more prolonged than that of any 
other class of men of science. A member of the Linnsean 
Society has informed us, that of fourteen members who 
died in 1870, two were over ninety, five over eighty, and two 
were over seventy. The average age of all the members who 
died in that year was seventy-five." 

The especial reason why true Christians are always most 
cheerful, is because they are most reasonable. They weigh 
things in their true and proper proportions. They view the 
little annoyances which fret those who exaggerate their im- 
portance at their true estimate, and besides, they have, at 
all times, an undercurrent of peace, and joy, and hope. 

CHILDEEN". 

The nu-Aiber in England and "Wales in 1881 was about 
7,500,000, of whom it is calculated 3,000,000 are absent 
from public worship every Sunday from tender age and un- 
avoidable causes. The average number of children in each 
family is 3 '7. 

Births. Taking the whole world, one child is born every 
minute. In London alone one in every four minutes. 

Deaths. In England nearly half the children die under 
five, in a large number of cases from the carelessness of the 
nurses and mothers. Dr. Taylor, the medical officer at 
Scarborough, has published the statement that fully 50,000 
infants die every year from the administration of improper 
food. But this has been questioned. 



88 



CHILDREN. 



Accidents. There are between 1400 and 1500 cliildren in 
England under five years of age annually burnt or scalded 
to death. In 1876 there were 1573. More than 1000 
children are suffocated by drunken parents, chiefly mothers. 

Poverty. In London 3000 children sleep every night out 
of doors — under railway arches, in sheds, &c. ; 24,000 are 
living homeless and in destitution; 12,000 are regularly 
trained and live as thieves. 

Carelessness. At a Petty Sessions in Suffolk in 1880, 
the police sergeant stated, that in the last ten years property 
to the value of £13,000 had been destroyed by children im- 
properly using lucifer matches. 

Influence of. Mr. Hill, Secretary of the Working Men's 
Lord's Day Rest Association, said, he had been told by 
a missionary of the Fiji Islands, that the old heathen were 
so bored by the missionary's preaching against cannibalism, 
that they said to him, **If you will but let us alone, you 
may teach the children what you like." Very well," was the 
answer, and from that day cannibalism was doomed. 

TuERE AUE three things which most powerfully catch 
children — sugar, movement, laughter. 

There are three kinds of boys in the world — the I wills,'* 
the" / woji'ts;' and iha I can' ts.'' The "I wills" effect 
almost everything, the I won'ts" oppose almost everything, 
and the " I can'ts " fail in almost everything. 

Scripture Union. A delightful band of union. There 
are now more than 100,000 English members, whilst 1100 
branches exist ; 200 in London, and the rest in the country. 
It is spreading now on the Continent, and will, it is hoped, 
gradually throughout the world. 

A WAGGON was standing in the street of a town, with four 
fine strong horses harnessed to it. In the front was sitting 
a little boy. The driver of the waggon went away for some- 
thing, and whilst he was gone something frightened the 
horses, and they set off at full gallop down the hill. There 
was a terrible cry • the poor little boy and every one was 



CHRIST. 



39 



frightened. A woman called out, " Stop the waggon ! stop 
the waggon ! " An old man, cold-hearted like an icicle, said 
to her, " What are you making such a fuss about 1 he isn't 
your child." "No,'* said the woman; but he's some- 
body's child ; that's the same thing." 

A Child's Prayer. A little boy on Saturday night said, 
at the end of his prayer, God, let the minister say 
something to-morrow that I can understand." 

CHRIST. 

He is "precious" — "Can't do without Him." A faith- 
ful clergyman used sometimes to dine with a Christian friend 
between the morning and afternoon services on Sunday, and 
took the opportunity of speaking to the family upon the 
sermon he had preached. One day he asked a little boy 
what the morning text had been. The boy replied, " Jesus 
is precious." And what do you mean by precious 1 " The 
dear child was silent for a few moments ; then hiding his face 
in his mother's lap, he replied, Mother is precious ; we 
couldn't do without her." ^' Well answered, my boy," replied 
the aged minister. " ISTever forget that word — Jesus is 
precious ; we could not do without Him." 

A Living Person. A little boy seven years old was 
taken dangerously ill, and a gentleman went to see him. 
The family were regarded as very self-righteous people. On 
arriving at the house the gentleman was met by the mother, 
who said, " You'll find him well acquainted with the plan of 
salvation." " The plan of salvation," thought the good man. 
Ah, probably there he rests. What does he know of Jesus 
as a living Person, who died for him ? 

And so it proved. A few words showed how well satisfied 
the boy was for himself and his mother for him. He could 
talk about the scheme of redemption, but knew nothing 
personally of the Divine Redeemer. It pleased God to bless 
the instructions of the kind visitor, and the boy embraced 
the real truth. He did not die, but recovered, and afterwards 



49 



CHRIST. 



acknowledged that the good man first led him to understand 
and receive the truth of salvation, not in believing a doctrine, 
but in accepting a living Person. 

Have you ever thanked Him for it V* At a close of an 
evangelistic meeting in Worcestershire, a young woman was 
retiring from the room with a look of deep distress upon her 
face. A Christian friend stopped her, and inquired the cause 
of her sadness, and found it anxious concern for her soul. 
On questioning her, she acknowledged her lirm belief in the 
work of Christ, but it gave her no happiness. " Do you 
believe," tlie friend asked, that Christ died for you]" 
"Yes." And tliat He was buried and rose again, accord- 
ing to the Scriptures 1 " Yes." " And that He is now in 
heaven, and has been more than eighteen hundred years in- 
terceding for His people, and inviting sinners to turn to 
HimT' "Yes." " AVell, now, does not tliat make you 
hap])y 1 " She answered, Xo." For a time the gentleman 
could not understand the case. At last he asked her, Have 
you ever thanked Him]" She candidly acknowledged sho 
had not, and at once saw a secret of her unliappini-ss. The 
next evening she was at the meeting again, and came with a 
bright face. " Sir, I have thanked Him for what He has 
done for me, and now I do feel happy." 

" The Queen's coin — nothing else." A poor man was 
taken up by the police for leaving his horse and waggon 
without any one to look after them. It was the old story. 
He was not a drunkard, but had that day taken a little too 
much and fallen asleep, and so been found, and being 
summoned, he had to pay £1 2s. y or a week's imprisonment. 
He was being taken to the gaol to expiate his offence, when a 
lady waiting at a railway station heard the case, as the man 
was also waiting there for the train. She was touched with 
pity, and asked the policeman, "If I pay the fine for him, 
will he be allowed to go free V " Certainly, ma'am," the man 
replied ; we have no business to keep him a moment after 
the money is paid." Unfortunately the lady had not her 



CHRIST. 



41 



purse with her, hut offered a valuahle ring instead. " Would 
you take this ring ? It is worth a great deal more than the 
sum you require "I cannot, ma'am," the policeman 
replied; ''the ring may he worth, as you say, much more 
than the fine ; hut we must have the Queen^s coin — nothing 
else will do/' 

With the help of the man's hrother, who was there, and 
some people in the room, the fine was paid, and the man was 
told that he might go free, hecause the law had no further 
claim upon him. He would not helieve it at first, hut as he 
saw that it was all true, he turned to the lady with a look of 
the deepest gratitude, and said, " Oh, what can I do for you 1 " 
He was soon shown how it was only hy payment of the 
Queen's coin that he was made free. 

The rope not long enough. Dr. Blaikie of Edinhurgh 
closes his excellent tract on ' Christianity and Secularism ' by 
a story — ''In a town in the ISTorth of Scotland, a henevolent 
Unitarian minister once took to preaching in the streets. He 
spoke of the beauty of goodness, and invited sinners to the 
happiness of a virtuous and orderly life. A group of waifs 
and harlots stood near, one of whom, w^ho had not lost all her 
mother wit, replied to him in her native dialect, ' Eh, mon, 
your rope's nae lang eneuch for the like o' hiz ' " (your rope's 
not long enough for the like of us). His Gospel was not 
capable of reaching down to the depths to which waifs and 
harlots had fallen. It was a longer rope, a profounder gospel, 
that they felt to need. 

The difference of two letters. " There is a wide dif- 
ference between your religion and mine," said a humble 
Christian lady to one in whom she had long been interested. 
" Indeed," said he ; "how is that? " "Your religion has only 
two letters in it, mine has four. Your religion is d-o — do ; 
whereas mine is d-o-n=e — done." 

A MINISTER OF Christ, wom out with work in the midst of 
a blessed revival, and worn with conflict against sin and Satan, 
gained comfort through a dream; it matters not whether it was 



42 



CHRIST. 



a sleeping; or a waking dream. As lie rested in bed, he thought 
he saw all that was foul and vile lying before him; and while 
he watched the sight, one came and said to him, ^' This is self." 
His heart grew sick to believe that this could be a picture 
of himself. Bat while he gazed, a grave was mysteriously 
opened, and this hideous mass laid therein. He saw it buried, 
and over the closed grave a flat stone was laid down, and 
lettering' came upon it, which, when he examined, he found 
consisted of five letters — X EVER. Then he felt a hidden 
rapture, and knew that self was buried, and should never 
rise again. He thought he crept to the stone and kissed each 
letter. But at the other end of the grave there rose a cross 
surmounted with a cloud. Slowly the cloud rose, and the 
pierced feet were seen, and still rising, there came visible the 
form of the Beloved, with His wounded hands and side. The 
servant of Christ cried that he might see the face, but a voice 
said, It is sufficient; thou shalt see that by-and-by : mean- 
while preach the precious blood of Christ." 

The living bridge. Years ago a striking incident is said 
to have occurred at Paris. In a back street of that city a fire 
broke out at night. It was in a narrow court, in which the 
houses were built so that the higher stories overhung tlie lower 
considerably, and the upper stories sometimes almost touched. 
In the midst of the night, a father sleeping witli his children 
was suddenly awoke by the smoke filling the room. In a 
moment he jumped out of bed. With one strong blow he 
swept away the framework of the window of his bedroom, 
and the next moment he was safe across the other side of 
the street, through the window of the opposite house. He 
was safe, but he had not thought of the children. He caught 
the sound of their voices^ and saw their terrified faces look- 
ing through the flames at him. What could he do ] Without 
a moment's hesitation he jumped back again, and placing his 
foot iunnly against the window-sill of the house where he was, 
he launched his body forward, and grasped the window of 
the burning house, thus making himself a living bridge 



CHRISTIANITY. 



43 



between the two ; then shouting to his eldest boy, he bid him 
come and crawl over his body to the other side : the boy did 
so, and was saved. A second child and a third followed, 
trembling ; the fourth, a little boy, then came, almost too 
timid, but he dared, after a moment's hesitation, to make the 
effort. But as the little fellow was passing he heard his 
father cry, " Quick ! quick ! I can't hold much longer." He 
heard the voice of the crowd below assure him of the safety 
of his last child, and then the hold of the strong man was 
relaxed upon the burning house. There was a heavy crash, 
and he fell a lifeless corpse — a faint illustration of that 
salvation that comes to us poor helpless sinners through 
Him who bridged the chasm, though it cost His precious 
life. 

CHRISTIANITY 

Evidences of. The four most striking evidences of Chris- 
tianity are the Jews, the living Church, the two Sacraments, 
and the Bible, with all that these four points involve. 

Richard Baxter. It is said of him, that in reviewing his 
life he said, that in his earlier years the miraculous evidence 
for Christianity influenced him most ; in his middle life 
the prophetic and Scriptural ; in his later years the fitness of 
Christianity to give rest to his spirit was to him the most 
convincing evidence of all. 

Progress. Attempts have been made to trace the gradual 
progress of Christianity from its beginning, throughout the 
world. It is difficult in such a matter to find reliable data. 
Two different accounts exactly agree, the one drawn up by 
Mr. Sharon Turner, and the other by an American of note, 
Dr. Dorchester of Boston, who spent some years in careful 
investigation of the subject. 

They give the following statement — 

In the first century the professing Christians numbered 

about 500,000 

In the 2nd century 2,000,000 



44 



CHRISTIANITY. 



lu the 3rd century ... 


... 5,000,000 


4th 


>1 ... 


... 10,000,000 


5th 


>> ... 


... 15,000,000 


6th 


9} ... . . 


... 20,000,000 


7th 




... 24,000,000 


8th 


if 


... 30,000,000 


9th 


9J • • • 


... 40,000,000 


10th 


,j ... 


... 50,000,000 


11th 


„ 


... 70,000,000 


12th 




... 80,000,000 



Then came a dark era. The powers of the barbaric hordes 
from the north of Europe, and uf the Saracens from the south, 
checked the steady progress of the truth, and in tlie next 
century there was a decrease of 5,000,000, wliich was, how- 
ever, recovered in tlie following century, lliough the moral 
power was Ity no means regained. 

In the 13th century ... 75,000,000 

14th „ 80,000,000 

15th „ 100,000,000 

16th „ 125,000,000 

17th „ 155,000,000 

18th „ 200,000,000 

19th „ 440,000,000 

During the present century, it is believed, the Church has 
alreaciy doubled the number of her communicants. 

The numbers living under Christian government, according 
to Dr. Dorchester, have increased still more. 

1700. The number of those living under Christian 
Government were probably 155,000,000. 

1800. The number of those living under Christian 
Government— 388,000,000. 

1876. The number of those living under Christian 
Government— 685,000,000. 

So that about 48 per cent, of the population of the world 
(1,439,000,000) were nominally unjler Christian sway five 
years ago. 



CHEISTIANITY. 



45 



The estimated proportion of English-speaking people, ac- 
cording to the different religious denominations throughout 
the world, is given in Whittaker's almanack for 1883. 



Episcopalians . . « 


OA pion c\c\(\ 


Methodists of all descriptions 


iO,OUU,UUiJ 


Roman Catholics ... ... ... 




Presbyterians of all descriptions . . . 


10,300,000 


Baptists of all descriptions 


8,050,000 


Congregationalists 


6,000,000 


Unitarians 


1,000,000 


Free Thought 


1,000,000 


Minor Religions Sects 


1,850,000 


Of no particular religion ... 


8,500,000 




86,800,000 



What Christianity has survived — a marvellous evi- 
dence of its truth ! (1) The death of its Founder, even though 
it seemed to be a death inflicted by His own people, and 
the frustration of all their hopes. (2) The Fall of Jeru- 
salem, even though it caused the dispersion of the Lord's 
chosen people. (3) The opposition of the school of Gentile 
thought, the Epicurean and Stoic, rationalistic and philosophic. 
(4) The numberless heresies bred within itself — Gnosticism, 
Manicheeism, &c. (5) The power of Pagan Eome and its 
bitter persecution. (6) The persecutions from within itself — 
Arians, ISTestorians, Pelagians, Donatists. (7) The Fall of 
the Eoman Empire, and its separation iuto independent 
kingdoms. (8) The power of Islam. (9) Its own great schism, 
unto East and West. (10) The vices and corruptions of 
its own professors. (11) The most extraordinary revolutions 
at different times of human thought ; and yet it is advancing ! 

Blessed influence on the world. " The effects of the 
work of Christ were even to the unbeliever indisputable and 
historical. It expelled cruelty; it curbed passion; it 
branded suicide ; it punished and repressed an execrable 
infanticide ; it drove the shameless impurities of heathendom 



46 



CHRISTIANITY. 



into a congenial darkness. There was hardly a class whose 
wrongs it did not remedy. It rescued the gladiator ; it freed 
the slave ; it protected the captive ; it nursed the sick ; it 
sheltered the orphan ; it elevated the woman ; it shrouded 
with a halo of sacred purity the tender years of the child. In 
every region of life its ameliorating influence was felt. It 
changed pity from a vice into a virtue ; it elevated poverty 
from a curse into a beatitude ; it ennobled labour from a 
vulgarity into a dignity and a duty ; it sanctified marriage 
from little more than a burthensome convention into little 
less than a blessed sacrament ; it revealed for the first time 
the angelic beauty of a purity, of which men had despaired, 
and of a meekness at which they utterly scoffed ; it created 
the very conception of charity, and broadened the limits of 
its obligations from the narrow circle of a neighbourhood, to 
the widest horizon of the race. And while it thus evolved 
the idea of humanity on a common brotherhood, even when 
its tidings were not believed ; all over the world, wherever its 
tidings were believed, it cleansed the life and elevated the 
soul of each individual man. And in all lands, where it has 
moulded the character of the true believer, it has created 
hearts so pure, and lives so peaceful, and homes so sweet, that 
it might seem as though those angels who had heralded its 
advent, had also whispered to every depressed and despairing 
sufferer among the sons of men, * Though ye have lien 
among the pots, yet shall ye be as the wings of a dove, that 
is covered with silver wings, and her feathers like gold ' 
{Canon Farrar). 

The good Samaritan. A Chinese convert, preaching, 
illustrated the compassion of the Lord Jesus and the blessings 
of Christianity, by the figure of a man who had fallen into a 
deep pit, from which he could not deliver himself. A Con- 
fucian priest passed by, looked down, and said, " What a 
fool you were to fall in there," and passed on. A Buddhist 
priest came next, and said, I am very sorry for you ; if you 
can climb half way, I think I might help you." The Lord 



CHEISTMAS. 



47 



Jesus came to the spot, liad pity on the man, and went down 
into the pit and lifted him up, and set him on the safe 
ground again, rejoicing in his deliverer. 

It's all right ! here's a Eible/* Lord Shaftesbury, at 
a large meeting some time ago, related an anecdote, which 
shows what men naturally expect where the Bible is met 
with. " Some seamen were wrecked in the Pacific, at a 
considerable distance from the land ; they got into a boat, but 
soon lost their reckoning, but at last came to an island. One 
of them, who had been there before, recognized it as one of 
the Fiji islands. It was before the Wesleyans had fairly 
estabhshed their marvellous missions in those parts ; the men 
were therefore under considerable apprehensions, not knowing 
whether they should find the people cannibals, as so many 
were about there. They crept into a hut, and lay there 
concealed for a considerable time. After a while one of them 
crept out to see if he could find anything to eat, when 
suddenly he called out to his fellow, * Bill, there's no fear; 
it's all right ; here's a Bible 1 ' " 

CHEISTMAS. 

The December number of the ' Church Missionary Society's 
Quarterly Eeport ' was devoted to ' Christmas in the Missions.' 
It suggested the happy thought that so blessed a day is 
observed, though under different circumstances, in every 
quarter of the globe. We in England are accustomed to 
connect Christmas with bleak winter, and to associate it with 
frost and snow, with the scarlet-berried holly and the warm 
cheerful fireside. In regions lying south, Christmas falls in 
summer-time. In South India, e.g, Christmas Day appears 
in a garment of light, and the Eastern sun typifies to the 
Christian the power of " the Sun of Eighteousness," risen 
with healing in His wings." Interesting sketches are given 
of the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day spent in Tinnevelly, 
with the children singing Tamil Christmas hymns, and enjoying 
their feasts on cocoa-nuts, rice, &c., and the church decorated 



48 



CHRISTMAS. 



with plantain trees ; at Lucknow, in North India ; in 
Japan, the land of the rising sun " ; in Africa ; and in 
Korth-West America, where the intense cold is such as wc 
have no experience of in England — the average degrees of 
frost in some parts being 50° below zero : the account of the 
fervour of spirit in that cold region is singularly striking. 
On Dec. 27, after preaching a short sermon, the missionary 
administered the Holy Communion to forty-one native Chris- 
tians. At the afternoon service a little baby only a fortnight 
old was brought for baptism. It had to be taken four miles, 
with the thermometer 45° below zero ; and but for the moss- 
bag in wliich it was wrapped, could never have borne such a 
trial of infant strength. 

The graphic sketch suggests a glorious thought — tlie power 
of the one mighty Saviour through His Incarnation and 
Atonement to spread salvation and happiness throughout the 
world. 

The SOCIAL statistics of Christmas which generally appear in 
our English papers at the end of every year, bear full witness 
to the general spirit of hospitality and good will in which tlie 
festival is kept up. Besides which, think of tlie correspond- 
ence ! How the work is got through at the Post-Othce seems 
every year a greater marvel ! In 1880, the * City Press ' tells 
ns, there were, Dec. 22 — 24, no less than 1324 men kept 
busy at work at the General Post-0 tfice all through the night, 
whilst at ordinary times 196 are employed till midnight. 
The greatest number employed at any time was 2542, and the 
amount of correspondence at half-past ten on the 24th was 
1000 sacks, filled to the brim, over and above the ordinary 
quantity. The whole number of extra sacks despatched 
during the "season" was 4347 ; the whole number of letters 
being estimated (exclusive of registered) at eleven and a half 
millions, and the amount of postage alone at .£55,902, whilst 
the number of registered letters was 183,129. 

" I like Christmas Day better than I do our birthdays," 
said a bright-eyed home treasure to her father, " because on 



COLONIZATION, BRITISH. 



49 



our birthdays only one receives presents, "but on Christmas 
Day it is giving all roundJ' 

colo:n'izatio¥, beitish. 

At the opening session of the " Eoyal Colonial Institute " 
(1879) a paper was read, entitled * Colonization a JSTecessity 
of the Mother Country,' by Mr. Stephen Bourne. His chief 
arguments were, — 

1. "At the present moment, we can feed only half our 
population with home-grown food. 

2. There is no possibility of increasing onr home pro- 
ductions, so as to continue to feed even this proportion of our 
rapidly-increasing population. 

3. " That in the present condition of our barter, the value 
of our imports beiDg some £80,000,000 sterling in excess of 
our exports, our trade is nnable to bear the strain of feeding 
and clothing our population. 

4. " That emigration to our colonies is the natural pioneer 
of commerce. 

5. "That it is only by a large extension of our trading 
power we can hope to recover our commercial supremacy in 
Europe." 

The history and progress of British colonization cannot 
fail to be of deep interest to every Englishman; and it is 
pleasing to find the religious spirit which was marked in 
the beginning. The first exploring expedition sailed under 
John Cabot and his sons, in the reign of Henry YII. In the 
instructions given to Sir Hugh Willoughby by Sebastian 
Cabot, the discoverer of Il^ewfoundland (onr first colony), 
the twelfth item provides, " That no blaspheming of God or 
detestable swearing, nor communication of ribaldry, filthy 
tales, or nngodly talk ; neither dancing, carding, tabling, or 
other devilish games be suffered in any of the ships, especi- 
ally as provoking of God's most just wrath and sword of 
vengeance." The 13th item provides, " That the morning and 
evening prayer be read and saide in every ship by the minister 

E 



50 



COMILL^XICAXTS. 



in the Admiralty, and the merchant, or some other person 
learned, in other ships; and that the Bible or Paraphra-es to 
be read devoutl}^ and Christianly to God's honour, and for 
His Grace, and be obtained and had by humble and heartie 
prayer of the navigants accordingly." The concluding item 
ends with** an admonition of dutie and conscience towards 
God, under whose merciful hands navigants above all other 
creatures be most nigh and vicene," and a prayer to the living 
God, " to give them His grace to accomplish their charge unto 
His glorie." Sir W. Ealeigh, in his attempt for the plantation 
of Virginia, gave £200 " for the propagation of the Christian 
religion in Virginia," probably the first donation made by an 
Englishman for such a purpose. The patent to the first 
A'irginia Company, 1G06, expressed the hope that **so noble 
a work might, by the Providence of Almighty God, hereafter 
tend to the glory of His Divine majesty, by propagating of 
the Christian religion amongst such people as yet live in 
darkness.'* 

COMMUNICANTS. 

As a general rule, tlie Eev. H. Venn, the well-known 
Secretary of the Chun^h ^fissionary Society, states, the com- 
municants in our Foreign Missions are as one to five of the 
attendants at the churches. In 1861 the Church Missionary 
Society had 192 European missionaries in the field, and the 
communicants numbered 21,016, more than 109 communi- 
cants to each missionary. 

Another writer says. Taking the whole world, it is esti- 
mated there are now about 100,000,000 nominal Protestants, 
of whom 20,000,000 are supposed to be communicants ; there 
are about 54:0,000 communicants in mission lands. 

Eagged schools. It was mentioned at the annual meet- 
ing of the Eagged School Union at Exeter Hall in 1883, as 
a matter of great thankfulness, that out of all the children 
trained in the Eagged Schools, one in every hundred became 
a communicant. 



COMMUNICANTS. 



51 



China — where forty years ago not a single Protestant 
missionary was living within the limits of the Empire, there 
are now about forty different missionary societies working ; 
there is a professing Christian community of about 50,000 
attendants, and 20,000 communicants. 

Polynesia, including Hawaia and the seven groups of 
islands best known to Englishmen, have now become almost 
entirely professing Christian, with about 400,000 baptized 
Christians, and about 90,000 communicants. 

South Africa. It is reckoned there are about 185,000 
attendants at the churches and chapels, and 35,000 com- 
municants. 

In London, when there were 3,000,000 of people, the 
City Mission estimated the number of communicants to be 
100,000. 

In Sierra Leone in 1882, the total number of church 
attendants was 10,500, and the average attendance every 
Sunday morning 7639, and evening, 5887 ; the number of 
communicants was 4311. 

In India, Ceylon, and Burmah, a decennial statistical 
table has been published since 1851, which is deeply inter- 
esting as showing the steady progress of mission work. In 
these three places, the number of communicants was in 
1851, 17,306; 1861, 47,274; 1871,78,494 ; 1881, 145,097; 
the total number of native Protestant Christians beinsc 

CD 

528,590 (for 1881). In India alone the numbers were, 
1851,14,661 ; 1861,24,976; 1871, 52,816; in 1881, 113,325: 
thus the number nearly doubled between 1851 and 1861, 
and more than doubled 1861—1871 and 1871—1881. :Nearly 
two rupees a-year have been contributed for Church purposes 
on the average by every communicant in the native churches, 
though most of these are of the poorest class. The number of 
native Christian teachers in the educational work of missions 
has almost doubled in the last ten years. In 1871 it was 
2294; in 1881, 4345. 

E 2 



52 



CONFESSION OF SIN. 



COXFESSIOX OF SIX. 

A MISSIONARY ^vas Speaking one day to the servants of the 
house on the text, " All have sinned, and couie short of the 
glory of God." They said, after hearing what he said, — " Ah ! 
Sahib, that is not true of all ; it may be true of us, but it 
is not true of all." He asked how they could prove such 
a statement, and they answered, " Tliere was a Christian 
lady who lived here ; she was not a sinner ; she never said a 
bad word, she never told any falsehood, she was always kind 
and good. Xo one could say she was a sinner." The 
missionary, after thinking how he could best answer them, 
replied, But what did she say of herself]" " Well, there 
was one thing we never could understand. She used to call 
us in to family prayers every morning and night, and used to 
speak of herself as a sinner." Well," said the missionary, 

you see then how she felt, and yet you say she never spoke 
an untruth ! Is it not true, then, that all have sinned," if 
the very best Chriistians feel themselves needing pardon and 
mercy ] " 

COXSCIEXCE. 
Have you ever noticed the great clock of St. Paul's] 
At mid-day, in the roar of business, how few hear it but those 
who are close to it ! But when the work of the day is over, 
and silence reigns in London, then it may be heard for miles 
around. It is just like the conscience of an impenitent man. 
While in health and strength, in the whirl of business, he will 
not hear it. But the time will come when he must retire 
from the world, and look death in the face ; and then the 
clock of conscience — the solemn clock — will sound in his 
ears, and, if he has not repented, will bring wretchedness and 
misery to his soul " {^Bishop Ryle), 

COXYERSIOX. 
Just as i am." The history of Miss Charlotte EUiott's 
conversion was told as follows by Mr. Sankey ; " At a gather- 



CONVERSION. 



53 



ing in the West End of London tlie Eev. Csesar Malan 
found himself seated by a young lady. In the course of con- 
versation he asked her if she were a Christian. She turned 
upon him, and somewhat sharply replied, ^ That's a subject 
I don't care to have discussed here this evening.' *Well/ 
answered Mr. Malan, with inimitable sweetness of manner, 
* I will not persist in sjpectking of it, but I shall pray that you 
may give your heart to Christ, and become a useful worker 
for Him.' A fortnight afterwards they met again, and this 
time the young lady approached the minister with marked 
courtesy, and said, * The question you asked me the other 
evening has abided with me ever since, and caused me very 
great trouble. I have been trying in vain in all direc- 
tions to find the Saviour, and I come now to ask you to help 
me to find Him. I am sorry for the way in which I 
previously spoke to you, and now come for help.' Mr. 
Malan answered her, * Come to Him just as you are.' * But 
will He receive me just as I am, and now % ' ^ Oh, yes,' said 
Mr. Malan, 'gladly will He do so.' They then knelt 
together and prayed, and she soon experienced the holy joy 
of a full forgiveness through the blood of Christ. The young 
lady's name was Charlotte Elliott, and to her the whole 
Church is indebted for the pathetic hymn, commencing — 

"Just as I am, without one plea, 
But that Thy blood was shed forme, 
And that Thou bid'st me come to Thee, 
Lamb of God, I come ! " 

Childeen. If we look well into the annals of the Church, 
probably many more of our eminent Christians would be 
found to have been brought to the knowledge of the truth ia 
early life than is commonly supposed. Polycarp, the disciple 
of St. John, and the martyr who died at the age of 95, 
was converted when he was nine years old, and served his 
Divine Master 86 years. Justyn Martyr, who lived in the 
second century, wrote, that many of both sexes had been made 



54 



CONVERSATION. 



disciples of Christ from their infancy, and continued steadfast 
all their lives. Kichard Baxter could not remember the time 
when he did not love God, and all that was good. Matthew 
Henry was converted before he was eleven years old ; President 
Edwards probably at seven ; Dr. Watts at nine. 

When do most conversions take place] At a Bible 
reading at Mr. Marcus Wright's of Birdsgrove, Ashbourne, 
tlie assertion was made, that conversions in advanced life are 
frequent. Tlie assertion was questioned, and made the 
8ul)ject of discus>iion ; and to put it to the test, each one was 
asked to state when they were first led savingly to know the 
Lord. Every one in the room said before twenty-one, except 
the host, who said that las spiritual life began after fifty. 
For fifty years he was a man of the world ; but for twenty 
years after he sought so far as he could to redeem the time, 
and was in labours more abundant." 

One way in which many more might be brought to 
God. The Ecv. E. Knill used to make the best manner of 
approacliing different persons in conversation about personal 
religion, a matter of earnest study. The instances of his 
success are too numerous to mention. It is said, as many as 
one hundred ministers traced their first awakenings and call 
to work to his solemn appeals, first to give their hearts to 
Christ, and then their lives to His service. 

COXYEESATIOX. 

It is common enough to think of authors writing so many 
volumes ; do we ever think of ordinary persons speaking 
so many] A calculation has been made by Mr. Crane — • 
" Perhaps it will not be an extravagant estimate to suppose 
that all are engaged in conversation, on an average, five hours 
a day. In a pubUc address, an ordinary speaker proceeds at 
the rate of about fifteen octavo pages an hour. It is safe for 
us to adopt that rate in estimating conversation. We have 
then, on an average, five hours' conversation a day, proceeding 
at the rate of fifteen pages an hour. This makes a volume of 



COURAGE. 



five hundred and twenty-five pages a week. In threescore 
years and ten the conversational aggregate would amount to 
a library containing the very respectable number of three 
thousand six hundred and forty volumes octavo." 

COUEAGE. 

An example of Missionary heroism at Metlakatlah. 
When Mr. Duncan was so nobly carrying on that wonder- 
ful mission — the mission in British Columbia, amongst 
murderers !ind cannibals — he was at times violently opposed 
by one of the worst of the people, a man whose name was 
Legale, the head chief of the whole tribe, a passionate 
man, a murderer, a drunkard, and one of the strongest up- 
holders of the medicine rites," heathenish ceremonies, which 
the whole tribe held in awe. The first act in his life which 
fell under Mr. Duncan's notice was the murder of a helpless 
and innocent stranger. Being irritated by some other chiefs, 
he went out and shot a man, any one, he did not care who, so 
long as his angry feeling could find vent. This man set him- 
self most determinately against the school which Mr. Duncan 
had commenced, as it seemed to interfere with the meetings 
which the medicine men were accustomed to hold at a certain 
season of the year, and so he waxed angry, and sent an im- 
perious message, that the school must be shut during the 
month of medicine work ; but Mr. Duncan, after deep thought, 
refused to give in to heathen ceremonies ; on which the great 
man sent still more pressing demands, for at least a fortnight's 
respite, then for four days, then for one day. Still the 
brave teacher refused to clear the way for the devil's work. 
Legale threatened to shoot any scholar who dared to attend 
in spite of his wishes. It might be no empty threat, as 
the teachers and the scholars knew ; but still they came, 
the most timid of them, at the sound of the bell, struck 
that one terrible day by the master himself, that it might 
send forth no uncertain sound. In amongst the little ones 
burst the chief and seven of his followers, mad with rage and 



56 



COVETOUSNESS. 



drink, demanding the school to be closed. !Mr. Duncan 
answered hiui gently but plainly, telling him his works were 
evil, and that he could not in any way help them on, so that 
threats were useless, since he feared only his own master, God, 
not Legale, and was bound alone to obey Him. For an hour 
the parley went on, the chief drawing his hand across his 
throat, and saying he knew how to kill people. Then he 
turned to the benches of scholars, not alone containing simple 
children, as in our country, but grown men, sin-stained heathen, 
hardy men, observing contemptuously to his followers — 
am a murderer, and you are murderers. What good is it for 
us to come to school 1 It might seem useless to answer such 
a question to the infuriated chief, but Mr. Duncan did so, 
telling him gently that Christ would pardon even murderers. 
And then, to the surprise of every one, Legaic withdrew, 
and school was resumed. ^Ir. Duncan writes in his journal 
that day, as if amazed, — I am alive, and have heartily to 
thank that all-seeing Father, who has covered and supported 
me to-day." 

COYETOUSNESS. 

" I REMEMBER a vcry extreme case of this evil (determin- 
ation to get money), and how terrible were the crimos it led 
to, and no less terrible the retribution that followed. The 
incident was told me by a friend from India, who knew the 
man of whom it speaks. He was a slave master in Travancore, 
and he had one only daughter. To obtain for her an advan- 
tageous marriage, he determined by any means to get a large 
sum of money for her dowry, and he did it by robbery, 
cruelty, and in some cases even by murder. His slaves 
attacked boats on the river known to contain valuable wares, 
taking the spoil, sometimes even slaying the owners, and 
then dividing the ill-gotten goods with their master. By- 
and-by his aim was accomplished — the dower was obtained, 
and the daughter well married. By some strange mistake, 
in the dusk of the evening, many miles from the father's 



CRIME. 



57 



house, tlie slaves attacked tlie marriage- party on its way 
home, and in the strife killed the daughter, for whom all his 
wealth bad been accumulated. Miserable and broken-hearted, 
the father went down to his grave, the victim of his own 
avarice and wickedness " {Rev, G, Everard), 

CEIME. 

But little estimate of the amount of actual crime com- 
mitted in the country can be gathered from the number of 
committals and convictions in our assizes and sessions, since 
so large a number are now dealt with by the magistrates ; and 
a vast amount of crime is always being committed, undetected 
by any human eye and unpunished by any human law. But 
it is a fearful thought, that there have been between twenty 
and thirty thousand committals before our judges every year 
for the last twenty years. Since 1840 to 1881 the entire 
number of committals has been 1,535,051, of which 1,034,463 
were convicted, and 496,550 acquitted. The number brought 
before the police have been much larger: in 1880, 519,000. 
In London alone, in 1879, 81,385 persons were taken. Be- 
sides these there are about 130,000 persons at large known 
as thieves, vagrants, habitual drunkards, &c. 

It is estimated that the supervision of the criminal classes 
costs the country about £2,500,000 a-year, the value of 
property lost through them being about <£1 3,500,000. 

The entire strength of the police and constabulary force 
throughout the kingdom in 1881 was 32,032, of which 11,193 
were members of the Metropolitan police; the city police 
being 660. The cost of the whole body was £3,157,876. 
There is one policeman, taking the population of the whole 
kingdom, to every 810 of the people. (See also under Prisons 
and Reformatories.) 

CEUELTY. 

Do we think enough of the social advantages of our own 
day, and thank God for them] Informer times, lunatics were 



58 



CURIOSITY. 



chained and put in cages like wild beasts. Lepers were 
banished from the towns, and made to live in some remote 
quarter, as if they were not human beings. In the middle 
ages, in some parts, like living corpses, they wandered forth, 
closely wrapped up from head to foot, carrying in their hand 
what w^as called the Lazarus rattle, with which they gave 
notice of their approach, that every one might get out of their 
way. Gidley slaves were made to tug at the oar till they 
expired from exhaustion. Criminals were crowded together 
without regard to age or sex, till the prisons of Europe became 
the very sink of ini(|uity. Four hundred years ago criminals 
were given over to be vivisected by the surgeons of Florence 
and Pisa ; and what sliall we say of the unutterable horrors 
c)f the slave Iratle, of the days of persecution of Jew and 
Christian, and of all the fiL'udish crnelties of paganism] 

Cruelty is a growing passion, perhaps from two causes : 
the cruel man feels that his victim hates him, hence he 
determines to punish all the nK^re, for the very hatred he 
has himself created ; there is also an excitement in cruelty 
which goads the cruel man on, like a fire burning fiercer and 
fiercer in his breast. 

CUPJOSITY. 

Cases are continually multiplying where curiosity has 
been the first thing that led to an inquir}^ after truth. A 
very interesting case has occurred lately in Bohemia, where a 
deeply interesting revival of evangelistic work has been going 
on, in the old martyr churches of Bohemia and Moravia. 

The Protestant congregations at Horjitz in Bohemia are 
making an effort to build a small church for their increasing 
numbers. The little Protestant community there does not 
date back later than ten years, and owes its origin to a 
stonemason. This humble man was engaged in cutting an 
inscription on a tombstone for a Protestant family belonging 
to a distant village, Avhen the words awakened within him a 
desire to see the book from whence they were taken. He 



DEAF AND DUMB. 



59 



obtained a "New Testament, and "became so interested, tliat he 
invited his neighbours to come and read it with him. This 
went on for some months, nntil at length his conviction led 
him to join the nearest Protestant church, eight miles off. 
This step, and his continuing to hold private meetings in his 
house, resulted in his being denounced by the priest, turned 
out of his lodgings, and deprived of work. The attention of 
the Evangelical Continental Society was called to this fact 
by Pastor Janota, of Chleb, and a minister was sent to 
Horjitz. Services have been regularly held in the town ever 
since. Some of the scattered Protestants in the neighbour- 
hood have attended them, and both amongst them and 
amongst those converted from Eomanism, the friends of the 
stonemason, an earnest spiritual work has, by God's blessing, 
sprung up. 

DEAF A-NB DUMB. 

It is supposed there are about 170,000 deaf mutes now in 
Europe. In the British Isles, there were in 1851, 17,300, 
or one to every 1593 of the population; in 1861 there were 
20,311, or one in every 1432; in 1871 there was a slight 
decrease, the number being 19,327, or one in every 1644 j 
in 1881 it was 21,230. 

The efforts for the instruction and welfare of this afflicted 
portion of our population, is a striking proof of social benevo- 
lence. There are about 200 institutions throughout the world 
for the deaf and dumb, giving instruction to 7000 people. 
Asia has 1 in Smyrna ; America 14 or 15 ; all the rest are in 
Europe. 

The above numbers are, of course, exclusive of the thou- 
sands of persons who are partially deaf, and are deaf without 
being dumb. 

Ephphatha Sunday. In the United States, the 12th 
Sunday after Trinity is called Epliphatlia Sunday, from the 
gospel for the day, and a collection is generally made for the 
deaf and dumb on that Sunday. 



60 



DEATH. 



DEATH. 

A STORY IS TOLD of a father who had his little child out 
late one evening. The night was dark, and they had to pass 
through a thick wood to the bank of a river. Far away, on 
the opposite shore were a few lights in some houses near the 
city, and further still were the bright lamps of the city 
where they were going. The child was tired and sleepy, and 
the father held her in his arms till the ferry-boat came. By- 
and-by they heard the sound of the oars, and they were safe 
in the boat. ''Father, father," cried the frightened child, 
'^it is so dark, and I cannot see whure we are going." The 
father answered, " My child, the ferryman knows the way ; 
we shall soon be there." " Oh, I wish we were over, father ! " 
So, soon, in his loving arms the child was across, and all her 
needless fears were gone. 

Some months after, the child was standing by another 
river — the Eiver of Death. '* Father," she said, I have come 
again to a great river." '* Yes, my child ; does it seem as dark 
and cold as the first one did]" ''Oh no," the dear one answered, 
" there ^s no darkness here — the river is covered over with 
floating silver ; tlie boat that is coming to fetch me looks all 
of solid light, and I don't feel at all afraid of tlie ferryman." 
" Can you see over the river, dearest ] '* " Yes," she said, 
"there's a beautiful city, and it is all full of lights, and I 
hear music such as the angels sing." " Do you see any one 
on the opposite shore ] " " Yes, I see the most beautiful 
forms, and they beckon me to come to them ; and I see 
Jesus, and He says, Come. Lord, T come, I come ! " 

" Here alone." It is recorded of the late Sir Eobert Peel, 
that, walking one day in the country arm in arm with a friend, 
they entered the village churchyard. Sir Eobert immediately 
unloosed his arm, and said to his companion, " Here, alone." 

A LITTLE CHILD, who had gone through the churchyard 
and read the epitaphs upon the tombs, asked her mother 
in her simplicity, '^ Mother, where are all the bad people 
buried?" 



DELAY. 



61 



Bishop McIlvaine. Few persons have lived more than 
lie did in the constant but Christian view of death. He wrote 
once to his daughter, " It seems so like going home, to go to 
the presence of J esus, and the assembly of His departed ones. 
I feel a sense of lively pleasure often in thinking of it, just 
as one does in the pursuing of a delightful journey to some 
beloved place. Death I do not realize. It seems abolished, 
I overlook it. It seems like a stream to be crossed, down in a 
valley of the road ; but I look so much at the hills of blessed- 
ness beyond, that it scarcely comes in sight. The Lord grant 
that I may not deceive myself with any pleasures of hope, 
that have not all their springs in Him.'' 

DELAY. 

The dream. Time enough yet." There is a strange 
dream told, which has a terrible truth. A man dreamt 
he saw Satan seated on his throne, and all the evil spirits 
round him, waiting for his commands. Suddenly the ques- 
tion was put by Satan, A¥ho will go forth to ruin souls 
on earth]" The answer came readily enough from one, I 
will." What will you tell them % " said the Evil One. 

will tell them there is no God.'' That will not do," 
said Satan ; " men know there is a God. Sometimes they deny 
it to their fellow-men ; but deep in their hearts they know there 
is a God, and that they must face Him some day." Again 
he asked, "Who will go forth to ruin souls " I will," said 
a second spirit. " And what will you tell them " I will 
tell them that there is a God, but that He is a just and holy 
God, and that they are too had to come to Him." " That will 
not do," said Satan. Their very need will drive them to 
Him. Besides, while there are Bibles in the world, they have 
only to look into them, and read how God invites them, sinners 
as they are, to come to Him, and receive everlasting life." 
There was a pause, but a third spirit came forward and said, 
like the two first, '^I will go forth." Once more the ques- 
tion was asked, "And what will you tell themT' " I will 



G2 



DISCOURAGEMENT. 



tell them that there is a God ; I will let them hear the Gospel 
as often as they like. They may read the Bible. I will not 
hinder them from hearing that salvation is the gift of God, 
and not of works. They may hear itall.'* How then will 
you ruin them 1 " asked the great Prince. " I will tell them 
it may be all true. But," he added, with a look of fiendish 
malice, I'll tell them that there is time enough to think 
about believing, and accepting God's offer, and they may loait 
a little longer,''^ A murmur of applause and triumph 
passed through the cavern of despair. " Go forth,'* said 
the Prince of Darkness, **and that will do.'' It was but a 
dream. But, alas ! how often has it been a terrible reality. 

" After Christmas " — so said Edward L., first mate of the 
* Harriet,' when the captain, a godly man, was urging him to 
immediate decision for Chri.-^t. " Don't be anxious about me, 
captain," was the answer. " Christmas will soon be here, and 
you have my promise after tliat." Tlie captain sorrowfully 
bade him good night," and went below. Not ten minutes 
had passed before he heard hurried footsteps on deck, and 
then the cry, " ^lan overboard." Yes, it was young Edward 
L., who, reaching over the quarter-deck to draw an entangled 
log line, lost his footing and lell overboard. Everything was 
done which brave hearts and active hands could do, but in vain. 
He went down into the cold waters. Oh ! what a terrible sting 
it must have added to his agony, that ten minutes before he 
had had the offer of mercy pressed earnestly upon him, and 
he had refused it. 

DISCOUEAGEMEXT. 

" I've never done any good." An old man in Lincolnshire, 
a few years ago, was complaining, that though he was a Chris- 
tian, he had never known of any case where he had been able 
to do any good, though he had earnestly prayed to God to 
make him useful. He was encouraged to persevere, assured 
that such a petition could not be in vain. The old man was 
a regular attendant at church every Sunday. Though he 



DISCOURAGEMENT. 



63 



lived two miles from it, he was always there twice every 
Lord's Day. One very rainy Sunday he made his way to the 
House of God as usual, though without an umbrella, for he 
was very poor. An ungodly farmer, who never entered 
church, but spent the Sunday in making up his accounts, 
saw him pass the window, and said to himself, ''Well, 
poor old man, on a day like this I pity him ; however, he 
won't come a second time anyhow." In the afternoon at 
church time, the farmer walked to the window, looking at 
the heavy sky and pouring rain ; and who should pass but the 
good old Christian ! Yes, there he was, undeterred by rain, 
treading his way to the House of God, which he loved so well. 
A few days afterwards the church bell was heard tolling, and 
the farmer heard it and inquired who was dead. It was the 
poor man. He had been taken suddenly ill, and was now 
called to his home and blessed rest above. So sudden a death 
went like an arrow to the strong man's heart. He could not 
but compare his own state with that of one whom he had 
despised. ]^ext Sunday the farmer was at church; there 
morning and afternoon, and many Sundays afterwards. He 
listened with a new desire, and he received the truth. Thus, 
after death the discouraged Christian's prayer was fulfilled ; 
and he had not lived a useless life. 

" Who c^n tellT' — what the result of our work may be? 
The Thames Church Mission in 1835 began the Episcopal 
Floating Church Society, and a vessel was kept near the 
Tower, and was known as the Floating Church, but the sailors 
would not go to it. At the last meeting of the Thames Church 
Mission, an aged captain introduced himself to the secretary, 
and told him that forty-one years ago he attended the Brazen 
service (that was the name of the vessel) one Sunday night after 
returning from the West Indies, and then he said '' the Lord 
met with him, and he left England a changed man, and had 
been kept steadfast ever since." 

Fruit after many days. A story was given in the ' Chris- 
tian Herald ' a short time ago — a colporteur labouring in one of 



64 



DRESS. 



the suburbs of London, called at a house, and was received 
very angrily by the servant. Seeing she would not buy any of 
his books, which she said she did not want, he offered her a 
tract. She refused to take it, but after a little conversation did 
take it, and dropped it in a bag she had in her hand. Before 
going away she cast her eyes upon his pack, and saw a two- 
penny Testament, which seemed to please her taste: she 
bought it, putting it into the same bag with the tract. The 
two lay there for a long time untliought of, till one day she 
heard that her brother was ill at a liospital. She went to see 
him, and took some little delicacies, putting them into the bag 
with the Testament and tiact. On the road she bought a news- 
paper, thinking it would please him. But he did not care for 
it, saying, Oh, we see plenty of them things here." His 
eye, however, caught sight of the two other things in the bag, 
and he asked to have a look at them. She gave him both, and 
left them with him. lie read the tract, and afterwards the 
Testament, comparing the texts referred to for himself. The 
result was, that by their means the light of truth was brought 
into his heart, and after a time he died, rejoicing in having 
found the Saviour. 

DEESS. 

The dress a person wears is often a table of contents, a 
sign of character. 

As a rule, nature is very sparing of bright colours. 

It is remarkable what a large number of persons employed 
in the industrial pursuits of this country, are engaged in pre- 
paring dress and clothing ; according to the census returns, 
nearly double the number engaged in supplying f(jod and 
drink. The amount spent in the United Kingdom upon 
woollen goods yearly is about <£4:6, 000,000, and upon cotton 
goods £14,000,000, and for Knen £6,000,000. 

Queen Charlotte. It was a striking testimony she gave 
to Miss Burney, who waited upon her as maid of honour, as 
to the little abiding pleasure to be found in pomp and display. 



DROWNING. 



65 



" The Queen told me," said Miss Burney, " that at first, when 
she became the Queen of George III., she was struck with 
admiration of her splendid jewels and ornaments ; but the 
feeling soon passed away." 

" Believe me, Miss Burney,'' she said, " it is the pleasure 
of a week or a fortnight at most, and to return no more. I 
thought at first I should always choose to wear them, but the 
fatigue and trouble of putting them on, and the care they 
required, with the fear of losing any ; believe me, madam, 
in a fortnight's time I longed again for my earlier dress, and 
wished never to see them more." 

dkow]s^i:n'g. 

Fuo^r a Parliamentary return in 1878, there were drowned 
in inland waters, in England and "Wales, 3203 persons ; in 
Scotland, 482 ; in Ireland, 369 : total, 4054. 

DEU^^'KEN^s^ESS. 

It is very difficult to obtain accurate information as to the 
amount of drunkenness, so fearfully existing in the country. 
The number of apprehensions for drunkenness in the United 
Kingdom for the last few years, says Mr. Hoyle, cannot be 
less than about 300,000 yearly, exclusive of punishments for 
drunkenness in the army, which were in 1881, 43,656. But 
the police only apprehend the worst cases, taking no account 
of the thousands who, because they are neither " disorderly " 
nor incapable," escape the punishment of the law, though 
they bring misery upon themselves, and carry misery to their 
homes : besides also the vast though unknown number in the 
upper and middle classes, who indulge in the terrible sin in 
their own homes. Taking a low estimate, Mr. Hoyle says, 
drunkenness imposes upon the country an army of some 
700,000 habitual drunkards, and 1,000,000 occasional drunk- 
ards, producing over 2,000,000 cases of drunkenness every 
week in the year." 

The publications of our great Temperance societies give 

F 



06 



DRUNKENNESS. 



the most abundant evidence, the truth of which cannot bo 
denied, as to the fearful results of intemperance, in the United 
Kinc^dom. 

Pauperism. Out of every hundred paupers, it is estimated 
that seventy-five are made paupers through intemperate 
habits. 

Lunacy. Out of every liundred lunatics in the country, 
more tlian fifty are so throup^h drink, and amongst paui)er 
lunatics, more than eighty out of every hundred. This was 
tlie testimony of Lord JShalteshury, who for sixteen years 
was chairman of the Commissioners of Lunacy. Of insane 
women, the report of the Durham Lunatic Asylum states, the 
greater part became insane, from the cruelty of drunken 
liushands. Out of 300 i<liots, wliose fiimily history was 
carefully examined, 145 (nearly half) were the children of 
habitual diunkards, and in one case, where both parents were 
drunkards, no less than seven children were born idiots. 

PivoRCi:. Fully seventy-live ])er cent, of all the cases brought 
into the Divorce Court, according to Sir James llannam, are 
connected witli intem})erance. 

. Chime. A very large proportion (some say 90 per cent.) 
of all who are apprehended and punislied for crime, are f(jund 
to liave been led to it throuLjh diink. It re(iuires some 
caution to state the exact numbers, as the mode of making 
up the n^turns was greatly altered in tlie last few years. But 
during the last live years (ending 1880) the total number 
of cases of crime which have come be lore the magistrates in 
the whole United Kingdom, have exceeded 850,000 yearly. 
Of these there were about 300,000 cases of drunkenness, 
and over 180,000 cases of assault, and a large portion of the 
whole number may be traced directly or indirectly to this 
one cause. 

Yagrancy. ISTo reliable returns are published, but accord- 
ing to a leading article in the * Times,' in October, 1881, 

thirty years ago it was estimated that th^re were 200,000 
people in this island without a locdl habitation. It cannot 



DUTY. 



67 



now probably be less than 300,000. It can be scarcely likely 
that many of these are total abstainers.'' 

Deaths. The number of deaths annually from drinking 
has often been put down as 60,000, but Dr. ^N'orman Kerr 
and other capable judges estimate it at 120,000 a year. Besides 
which must be added the large though unknown number 
whose untimely end arises from this cause indirectly. There 
are about lialf-a-million of homes in our professedly Christian 
land where happiness and peace are banished, because the 
evil demon reigns in them. 

Indirect lo-ses — from the lost productive labours of 
vagrants, criminals, lunatics, &c., and from the money re- 
quired to maintain our prisons, asylums, policemen, &c. 
Mr. Hoyle calculates the indirect losses resulting from drink- 
ing, to be equal to the money directly spent upon it. Adding 
these together, it gives a loss of wealth to the nation yearly 
during the last twelve years of £268,000,000, or say, 
£200,000,000, or for the whole twelve years more than 
£2,400,000,000, equal to one-fifth of the nation's entire 
income from all sources. 

England— ^Christian England. In the House of Cora- 
'mons Mr. Gladstone, the Prime Minister, said on March 8, 
1880, It has been said that greater calamities are inflicted 
on mankind by intemperance, than by the three great historical 
scourges — war, pestilence, and famine. That is true for us, but 
not true for Europe and civilized countries in general, certainly 
not for Italy, for Spain, and Portugal, and I believe that for 
France and Germany it may not be ; but it is true for us, 
and it is the measure of our discredit and disgrace." 

DUTY 

— is a thing which is due, whether to God, to ourselves, or 
to our fellow-men. It is an obligation, a debt, which every 
honourable man, and still more every Christian man, is bound 
to discharge. Its truest and noblest aspect is a sense of 
justice, inspired by love. 

F 2 



68 



EDUCATION. 



The Dqke of Wellington's watchword, like Xelson's, 
and many of our noblest English heroes, was Duty. It is said 
of the great Duke, that his spirit never failed to communi- 
cate itself to those under him, who served in the same army. 
When he rode into one of the infantry squares at Waterloo, 
as its diminished numbers closed up to receive a charge of 
French cavalry, he said to the men, " Stand steady, lads ; 
think of what they will say of us in England," to which 
the men answered, " iS'ever fear, sir, — we know our duty.'* 

" Goodness, duty, sacrifice," said Eobertson of Brighton, 
these are the qualities that England honours/' 

I slept, and dreamed that life was Beauty, 
I woke, and found that life was Duty." 

One of the touching parts of Ihshop Patteson's Malanesian 
labours, was in the unfriendly island of Santa Cruz. At one 
time, when tlu-y approached it, a volley of poisoned arrows 
was shot at the boat's crew of the mission ship. Hapjaly the 
liishop was untouched, but three others were wounded ; of 
whom two died an agonizing death, from the effects of the 
poison. The two sutlerers bore their great i)ain most bravely, 
and wh(.'n the Great Sulferer, lie whom they looked to for com- 
fort, w.is mentioned, a holy smile covered their pale faces. " I 
am j^lad," said one dying boy, " that I was doing my duty. 
Tell my father that I was in the path of duty, and he will 
be so glad. Poor Santa Cruz ! " Then he begged the Bishop 
to kiss him ; and asked, thinking of the angels in heaven, 
" They never stop singing there, do they, sir ] " and so, full of 
pure and holy thoughts, he fell asleep in Jesus. 

EDUCATIOX. 

Joseph Lancaster, one of the pioneers of our present 
system of National Education, when a boy of only fourteen, 
had his alt mtion drawn to the subject by reading ' Clarkson on 
the Slave Trade.' This filled his mind with the noble design 
to leave his home and go to the West Indies, to teach the 



EDUCATION". 



69 



blacks to read the Bible. He actually did set out with, a 
Eible and * Pilgrim's Progress ' in bis bundle, and only a few 
shillings in his purse. He even succeeded in reaching the 
West Indies, doubtless much at a loss how to set about his 
proposed designs ; but in the mean time, his distressed 
parents, having found out whither he had gone, had him 
speedily brought home, though with enthusiasm unabated ; 
and from that time forward he devoted his life and power 
to the philanthropic work of educating the destitute poor. 
When only twenty years of age, in 1798, he opened his first 
school in a spare room in his father's house, which was soon 
filled with the destitute children of the neighbourhood. The 
room was soon found too small, and when place after place 
all became too small, at last Lancaster had a special building 
erected, capable of holding a thousand pupils, outside of 
which was placed the notice — ^' All that will, may send their 
children here, and have them educated freely ; and those that 
do not wish to have education for nothing, may pay for it as 
they please." 

Dr. Arnold was remarkable for the great value he attached 
to the power of influence in education. It was his great lever. 
He made it his principal object, first to put a right spirit into 
the leading boys by drawing out their good and noble feelings, 
and then to make them instrumental in spreading the same 
spirit among the rest. Dr. Arnold's own example was said 
to be an inspiration ; in his presence young men learned to 
respect themselves. 

" Every person has two educations : one which he 
receives from others ; and one which he gives himself " 
{Glhhon). 

Cramming. On the present system of education, Mr. 
Smiles says, " The improved mechanism of our schools promises 
to become so perfect, that we may, before long, be almost as 
highly educated as the Chinese, and with quite as impotent 
a result. The process of filling the memory with facts and 
formulas, got by rote, is rapidly extending ; but the practice 



70 



EDUCATIOIT. 



of independent tliinldng in any but the beaten trades, is 
not only not taught, but is carefully prevented. But the 
facility with which young people are thus made to acquire 
knowledge, thougli it may be cramming, is not education. It 
fills, but does not fructify the mind. It imparts a stimulus 
for the time, and produces a sort of intellectual keenness and 
cleverness ; but without an influential purpose and a higher 
object than mere knowledge, it will bring with it no solid 
advantage." 

The worst education," said John Sterling, which 
tcju:hes self-denial, is better than the best, which teaches 
everything else, and not that." 

**1 HAVE REMARKED witli great pain," said Lord Shaftes- 
bury, a short time ago, " one of tlie bad * signs of the times,' 
that in our j>risons now^ a large number of the prisoners 
have received a good education. In the report of the Penton- 
ville i)rison, the chaplain said, of the number of young persons 
who were now brought to prison, many of them had received 
a high education, anil almost all a fair education, and yet it had 
not deterred them from crime." 

Our NATIONAL system of education. The Bishop of Man- 
chester, in a speech at the National Society's meeting at 
Bolton in 1880, traced the several stages of the elementary 
education of the country. 

1811 — 1840. The formation of the Incorporated National 
Society. The State stood quite aloof from the education of the 
people, whether religious or secular. It delegated the work 
to the several religious bodies, and the Church of England 
stepj^ed fc.trward and took it up most nobly. 

1840 — 1870. The State woke up to the importance of the 
subject, and favoured the religious element. It made liberal 
grants, and no grant was made to any merely secular 
school. 

1870. A change took place. From this time no school 
was recognized according to its religious teaching. The 
State iguored all such teaching, though it was permitted ; 



EDUCATION. 



71 



and the system of Board Schools was now instituted, in which 
in any school maintained by the rates, religious teaching was 
not recognized, according to the dogmatic formulas of any 
religious body. 

1870—1882. The School Boards have provided 1,100,000 
school places, including a large number of places gained by 
the transfer of voluntary schools. But during the same time, 
the voluntary schools have increased their number of places 
by the stiU larger figure of 1,300,000. 

Progress. Half a century ago, a very small percentage 
of our population could read or write, ^ow 77 per cent, can 
both read and write, and the proportion is daily increasing " 
(ArchbuJwp of York), 

In 1818 only 1 child in 17 in England attended school ; iu 
1833, 1 in 11 ; and in 1851, 1 in 8. 

In 1820, in 11,000 parishes in England, 3500 were without 
a school. 

At the beginning of the present century, of all the persons 
who came to church to be married, only one-third of the 
men and half the women, could sign their names. In the 
manufacturing districts it was worse : only forty per cent, of 
the men and sixty four per cent, of the women could write. 
In 1837, fifty-eight in every hundred signed their names; 
and in 1876 eighty-one in every hundred. 

Mr. Mundelia, speaking at Birmingham on the progress 
of education since the passing of the Act of 1870, said, he 
found that in that year there was school accommodation for 
1,878,000 children, and in 1882 there were school places for 
4,538,000. The children on the register in 1870 were 
1,693,000 ; in 1883 they numbered 4,331,000. The average 
attendance in 1870 was 1,152,000 ; in 1883 it was 3,938,080. 
The work of education was daily advancing, as was proved 
by the fact that over 600 or 700 new children were every 
day entering school. 

Cost — of the schools under Government, has increased 
in full proportion with the extension of their work. In 18G9 



72 



EDUCATION. 



tlie Government grants, according to IMr. IMundella, were 
£1,672,000, and in 1882, £3,599,000. From the Privy 
Council Education Report for 1873, it appears that from 1839 
to December 31, 1872, tlwe was spent in building Church of 
England schools £3,585,164-, raised by subscriptions, aided by 
£1,356,487 Parliamentary grant ; British and Foreign schools, 
£220,633 subscription^^, aided by £106,120 Parliamentary 
grant; Wesleyan schools, £151,94:2, subscriptions, aided by 
£81,317 Pailiamentary grant; lloman Catholic schools, 
£99,650, aided by £42,167 ParHamentary grant. According 
to the same report, it appears that the annual subscriptions to 
maintain the schools have l)een. Church of England, £38,976, 
and Dissenters, £84,771. During the last sixty years, the 
National Society has dispensed £1,000,000 for educational 
purposes. 

An interesting statement was made in 1880, sliowing the 
comparative cost of the voluntary and l]oard Schools for 
the half-year ending Christmas, 1878, in London. Of 
the lioard Schools, the accommodation was 198,470, and 
average attendance 165,900 ; the voluntary schools accom- 
modation, 274,500 ; average attendance, 184,607. The 
average cost, from the report of the Education Department, 
was. Board Schools, £2 1^. 9J^7. ; voluntary, £1 14.^. 11^/. 
— i.e. m favour c»f tlie vohmtary schools, 6s, 10|rZ. The 
grant earned from the Government for each child, given 
by the test of the instruction received, was. School Board, 
156\ Id., voluntary, I5s. '2d. ; as the result therefore, showing 
that every child in the voluntary schools cost 65. 10|J. less, 
and had earned \d. more ; and further, while in the Board 
Schools the average cost of £2 Is. 9|ci. was met by a levy 
on the rate- payers to the extent of £1 Os, 4|ri. for each 
child, a large part of the cost of voluntary schools was 
derived from private contributions. 

In 1881, through the help of the Eeligious Tract Society, 
at the solicitation of Francis Peek, Esq., one of the members 
of the London School Board, 4000 copies of the Bible and 



EMIGEATION. 



73 



Testament were given away as prizes to tlie cliildren in the 
London Board Schools, that most excelled in Scriptural 
knowledge. I^ext year, 87,000 children voluntarily entered 
themselves for examination, and have been examined. Who 
can tell what results may follow from such a kind scattering of 
the Word of Truth 1 Mr. Peek mentioned at the Keligious 
Tract Society meeting several instances which had come to 
his knowledge. The father of one child was at first very 
unwilling that his child should compete at all, but the child 
begged, and the mother begged, and at last he consented. The 
child won a prize ; the father looked at it with pride, and when 
last I heard of the matter, he was in the habit of getting his 
child every night to read a portion of the Bible to him. 

The Eev. Joseph Cook, in his ' Advanced Thought in Europe 
and Asia,' gives some startling information about the mode of 
education in America. It is certainly surprising to find, that 
in the United States there are, by the last census returns, 
5,000,000 over ten years of a.^e who cannot read, and 6,500,000 
who cannot write. Of the 10,000,000 of voters in the 
United States, one in five cannot write his name. There 
are 18,000,000 of children and youths ; 10,500,000 are 
enrolled in public and private schools, but the average 
attendance is only 6,000,000. In thirty-four cities, from 
50 to 82 per cent, of the children of a school age are not 
enrolled at all. Kew York has 114,000 not enrolled, Chicago 
is even worse. 

EMIGEATIOK 

It is not easy to ascertain the exact number of persons who 
have emigrated from the United Kingdom. In the last forty- 
two years, from 1840 to 1881 inclusive, up to the year 1874, 
the statistical abstract gave the total number of persons of 
all nationalities : from that year downwards only those of 
British origin have been included. From these returns it 
appears, that the number of emigrants have been altogether 
8,222,743,~viz. to the United States, 5,539,133; to British 



74 



EMIGRATION. 



America, 1,122,185 ; to Australia and New Zealand, 1,252,851 ; 
to «>ther places, 300,574; or more than two-thirds to tlie 
United States. In the year 1882, the number of persons 
who left our shores, of Britisli origin, was 279,366, the largest 
number ever known ; the number of immigrants since 1870 has 
been 924-, 688. Other accounts report that, during the last 
two years no less than 16,000,000 have left the shores of Great 
Britain, of whom nearly 11,000,000 have found a new home 
in the Uidted States. 

It is much to be regretted, that so little provision is made 
for the spiritual welfare of our fellow-subjects who make 
their home in a distant land, tliougli the diilicubies of doing 
so are confessedly very great. How many of them look back 
with feelings of saddened remembrances, to the Sabbath 
privileges th- y valued l)efore leaving their father-land, wliichare 
lacking on their new settlement ; and how many more lose even 
the desire they once had, when immersed in all the toil and 
struggle of a colonist's life. The nundjers who have left the 
Churcli of liome through emigration is remarkable. A writer 
in the * Tablet,' February, 1879, conputed the loss of the United 
States at about 8,000,000, while similar results are to be found 
in many other parts of the world, especially in the British 
colonies. A Roman Catholic bishop has recently exhorted the 
people not to emigrate, as it was known that seven out of 
every ten emigrants became indifferent to their religious duties. 
He might have added, to speak more truly, that many of these 
seven had not become inditierent to all religion, but had left 
the Communion of the Church of Eome. 

The Archbishop of Canterbury said a short time ago, that 
our people are emigrating to America at the rate of 200,000 
a year." It has been shown that this is enriching America, to 
the extent of about £20,000,000 a year, and this not for one 
year only, but from year to year. The * Echo ' states, the exact 
number of immigrants into Xew York in 1881 was 455,681 ; 
other statements (unofhcial) justify the assumption that 
700,000 foreigners went to the States to make it their per- 



ENEEGY. 



75 



manent home. If this be true, Europe may be regarded as 
contributing to America, in the shape of human labour alone, 
without reckoning the money they take with them, and the 
value of their baggage, no less than a capital sum of 
£1,400,000,000 per'annum. 

Prom Ireland, in 1851, 78,617 of her people emigrated, and 
from 1851—1881, 2,715,604. 

The cash capital of all the immigrants arriving in America 
was reckoned in 1881 at £17 per head. 

Mr. J. W. Traser, of the Philadelphia Custom House, has 
published some interesting statistics concerning the occupation 
of the emigrants, "weary of Europe/^ who have gone to seek 
their fortunes in America : the occupations were taken from 
the emigrants' declarations of themselves on lai ding. The 
3,544,458 between June, 1873, and June, 188 2, included almost 
every class ; the most numerous were day labourers, 807,510 ; 
and the smallest were bankers, 295. The agricultural class 
embraced 311,799, and servants;, 124,809. The skilled artisans 
were 393,444; carpenters, 54,754 ; masons, 25,465. There 
were also ministers of religion, literary persons, &c., 36,848; 
physicians and surgeons, 1629 ; lawyers, 773 ; teachers, 3156 ; 
musicians, 4481. Of the sexes, 60 per cent, were males, and 
40 per cent, females. 

EI^ERGY— 

Is generally the secret of success, if rightly directed. 
" It accomplishes more than genius," says Smiles, with 
not one half the disappointment and peril. Sir Eowell 
Buxton used to place his confidence " in ordinary means and 
extraordinary application." One of J^apoleon's favourite 
maxims was, — "the truest wisdom is a resolute determination." 
"Impossible," he used to say, " is a word to be found only in 
the dictionaries of fools." Yet, alas 1 how his career taught the 
lesson that the power of will, if used only for selfishness, is 
fatal to its possessor, and that knowledge and will without 
goodness are but the incarnate principle of evil. 



76 



ENGLAND AND WALES. 



EXGLAXD AXD WALES. 

Population, at the beginning of the parochial system, 
is supposed to have been about 2,000,000; at tlie Eeform- 
ation, about 5,000,000; at the beginning of the present 
century, 9,000,000; in 1881, 26,000,000, or more exactly, 
25,968,280 (12,624,756 males, 13,343,532 females, being an 
excess of females of 718,778 — an excess, however, which 
would be greatly lessened were the army, navy, and mer- 
cliant service not excluded from the reckoning). Since the 
])eginning of the present century the population has increased 
about 2,000,000 every ten years. 

Property and income. In 1881 the value of real property 
was estimated at £2,000,000,000, and of personal property, 
£4,000,000,000, together e(|ual to about £6,000,000,000. 
The income of England and Wales was estimated at about 
£1,000,000,000, of wliich £436,000,000 belong to the work- 
ing classes, and £564,000,000 to the middle and upper 
classes. 

The ACREAGE is, according to the ofTicial returns, 37,319,221 
acres. 

Peligion. The glory of England is an open Eible." 
"When, in 1848, the revolutionary hurricane overturned so 
many thrones, that of Erance among them, some one remarked 
to M. Guizot, liow (piiet and secure England seemed to remain 
amidst the storm. Ah," replied the French statesman, 
" England has been saved by her religion." 

Since the first dominion of man over the sea, three great 
cities have stood upon her shores — Tyre, Venice, and London. 
Of the first only the memory remains ; of the second, the 
ruins ; the third, because lier greatness is built upon a surer 
foundation, may look forward to a more certain j)ermanence 
and a truer grandeur. 

There are upon an average, in England and Wales, 389 
persons to every square mile, though, of course, the density of 
the population greatly varies according to the locality. There 
are, on the average, 5*3 persons to every inhabited house. 



ENVY. 



77 



ENVY— 

Generally ascends, seldom descends. Men envy the rich 
and despise the poor. We like those better that envy us, 
than those that try to imitate us. 

A Cure. The Eev. G. Everard gives a receipt for the cure 
of envy : " Mingle together a few grains of self-knowledge, a 
few grains of true humility, and add a few drops of the oil 
of charity. Take it whenever you are tempted to think evil 
or speak evil of another." 

EEEOE— 

In DOCTRINE generally arises from the perverse additions 
made to some original truth. In most theological errors there 
was truth at the spring. An illustration, might be taken from 
the course of a river. In the report of the Elvers Pollution 
Commission, a list is given of the properties of each river, 
when first taken, as pure as water can be, at the spring ; then 
of the changes that have arisen in its course. The river 
Irwell, e.g.y when examined below Manchester, has nearly ten 
times as much organic carbon as there is when taken at the 
source ; and more than ten times as much organic nitrogen, 
derived solely from animal sources ; so of other ingredients. 
Just so it is with truth and error. What can be more reason- 
able, therefore, for the perfect purity of truth, than to go to 
the Fountain-head of truth itself, the clear spring of ^'the 
scriptures of truth'"? Or, to take another illustration, — we 
often speak of " the mists of error." What an affecting 
parable may be read in the loss of many a proud vessel through 
thick fogs at sea. At the end of January, 1882, the steam- 
ship Cimbria was sailing from Hamburg to New York, and 
had proceeded but a little way, when, in a dense fog, she came 
into collisi' >n with another vessel, the Sultan, and soon after 
sank, with a large part of the crew on board. The officers did 
all they could, distributing life-belts among the passengers, 
lowering the boats ; but the damage received was too severe, 
and out of about 490 passengers and crew, scarce 60 were saved. 



78 



ETERNITY. 



It needs a strong bulwark to withstand the flood of 
ERROR. Wc often speak of the laud flooded with iiifidtdity," 
and all kinds of false teaching. Take an illustration of what 
men do to protect our coast. The first stone of the famous Ply- 
mouth Breakwater wa^ lowered August 14, 1812. It stretches 
1280 feet across the Sound. It is 3G0 feet in breadth at the 
bottom, and more than 30 at the top. There were 3,GG0,000 
tons of granite blocks, of 1 to 5 tons each, put in, and in 
April, 1841 (after nearly 30 years labour), the whole was 
linislied, having cost a million and a half sterling. 

— "is puopagatrd by infection rather tlian by contagion." 
Men have been in the habit of confining their guarded 
caution and their care altogether against formal error, as 
dogmatical ly ]U'()poundcd in false propositions, and have felt 
little jeal ousy and exercised little guardedness where truth 
was not directly or in exjircss terms denied. It is the state- 
ment rather than the spirit of writers they have feared. 
Hence it has become common U) hear them say, with regard 
to certain authors, or to certain kinds of books, "Where is 
the harm in tliem] Vuint out where the error or danger 
lies." As justly might they ask to be sh<jwn the infection 
that floats in impure air. Error, as it at flrst operates upon 
thousands, is an atmo>i)here, an invisil)le influence, and it is 
not usually till this influence lias wrought its insidious effects 
upon the moral system that false doctrine gains possession, 
or assumes the form of a positive existence. Here lies the 
true diagnosis of error " (Reo. Steplum J tuner), 

ETERXITY. 

At Boulogne there was once a prisoner, supposed to be 
mad, who, wherever he went, was always crying, " Eternity, 
eternity; nobody thinks about it." 

A PIOUS minister had a young man in his congregation, 
the son of a worthy woman, who often prayed for him. For a 
long time he appeared wholly indifferent to all appeals made 
to his conscience, and though often spoken to, yet invariably 



ETERNITY. 



79 



showed tlie same indifference. One evening, wMlst engaged 
at work, the young man was ushered into the minister's study. 
He had never called before. But now evidently a great change 
had come over him. He was filled with the deepest concern 
about his soul. The minister questioned him as to the cause of 
the change. It was one word in your sermon," was the answer, 
" I was giving no heed to what you were saying, and can give 
no account of it now ; but you suddenly uttered the word 
eternity, I do not remember in what connection. I heard 
nothing but one word. But that word pierced me to the 
heart — eternity. It kept ringing in my ears — Eternity, 
eternity. I have never thought, I said to myself, of 
eternity, and yet I am journeying to if Such was the 
simple account. Tiiat word, tent home by Divine power, had 
awakened his carehss soul, and leit him no peace, till his 
heart began to realize what eternity involves. 

A Christian traveller once saw the following solemn 
admonition printed on a folio sheet, and hanging in a public 
room of an inn in Savoy ; and he afterwards found it was 
placed in every house of the parish : — " Understand well the 
force of the words — a God, a moment, an eternity; a God 
who sees thee, a moment which flies from thee, an eternity 
which awaits thee ; a God whom you serve so ill, a moment 
of which you so little profit, an eternity which you hazard so 
rashly." 

Eternity with Christ. Bishop Mcllvaine, that eminent 
saint, wrote in reference to the death of Bishop Bedell — 
am amazed at the little dread and feeling of sadness that I 
have in surveying, as so near, my end, and in realizing as I 
do how very uncertain is each day. I can think and speak 
of going as if it were a pleasing journey home ; the darkness 
of the valley is overlooked in the bright vision of the blessed- 
ness beyond. The prospect seems familiar. All here seems 
as it were but a day or two. Eternity, the home of the people 
of God, is always in sight. Whenever I think of eternity, aU 
my thoughts rise to Jesus." 



80 



FAILURES. 



FAILUEES 

— are by no means to "be always causes for setilod dis- 
couragements. Failure is often deterred suecess — as children 
learn to ^valk after many falls. Few men know a country 
well, without bein.^' sometimes lost. It has been truly said, 
defeat tries a general more than a victory. Washington lost 
more battles than lie gained, but he succeeded in the end. 
The Eomans, in their most victorious campaigns, generally 
began with defeats. The same is true of nearly, if not all, 
our great actors and speakers, — through many failures they 
have climbed the ladder of fame. 

It is a good rule : " Let to-day's practice be much in the 
mending of yesterday's mistakes." 

The discharge of duties with a guilty conscience, is Satan's 
great receipt for spiritual failures. 

FAITH. 

Catching the rope. In the Shetland Isles, the fowlers 
are let down by ropes over the edge of the cliffs to the places 
wh'^re the wild-fowl lay their eggs. One day a fuwler was 
let down, and rested on the edge of a rock, where he set to 
work to collect the eggs and eider down from the nests. 
After he had made a good collection, he thought of returning 
to the top, when, to his horror, he found he had forgotten 
about the ropo, and lut it slij), and there it was swinging in 
the air at some distance from him. What could he do? His 
position was a fearful one. There was only one way of escape 
from being left to perish, to throw himself into the air, and 
make one desperate eli'ort to catch the rope. It w^as a 
fearful risk, as the rope seemed so far off. But gathering up 
all his strength, he threw away all his gathered spoil, made 
one wild spring, caught the rope, and was saved ! 

iN'oT TEXTS ONLY. " Will you put it down in black and 
white what I am to believe," wrote a lady to the Rev. Robert 
Howie. I have been told of many different texts ; and they 
are so many, that I am bewildered. Please tell me one text 



FAITH. 



81 



and I Tvill try to believe it/' the answer came. " It is not 
any one text, nor any number of texts that save, any more 
than the man who fled to the City of Eefiige was saved by 
reading the directions on the finger-posts. It is believing on 
the person and work of the Lord Jesus that we are brought 
into life ; and once born again, are kept in that life.*' 

The Alpine flower. " In ascending the Alps, the traveller 
passes through different regions of vegetation. First comes 
the vines, then the fruit trees, then magnificent forest trees ; 
higher up the stunted pines; then higher still, dwarf trees 
and mosses ; at last, the regions of perpetual snow. But far 
up, almost at the top of the mountains, a tiny sweet flower 
peeps through the snow. It has often drawn tears from the 
manliest traveller. It blossoms away there cheerfully, sweetly. 
And thus, in the soul, you pass through the regions of know- 
ledge, emotion, will; and on the summit, despite the cold 
atmosphere of moral depravity and continual alienation, if 
you are a child of God, the flower of faith, true faith, ever 
blooms and cheers " (^Handbook of Illustrations). 

A CHILDLIKE FAITH. The following story is given in the 
* Quiver,' June, 1882. A dying mother called her only 
surviving child, and took a sad farewell of him, feeling assured 
that she was not long for this world. She concluded her last 
advice to him thus ; * Mind, I am going to die, but Jesus will 
take care of you.' The promise sank deeply into the child's 
mind, and having complete faith in his mother's words and in 
her teaching, he waited not in the town begging or c<msorting 
with other boys, not even in the little lodgings to wliich he 
might have returned for a time, but he lay down on the newly- 
trimmed earth of his parent's grave, waiting for Jesus to take 
care of him. On the grave he slept, and in the morning his 
faith was rewarded. A wealthy citizen walked past the 
cemetery, and as he looked in, he perceived the child lying 
upon the grave. The good Samaritan inquired of the 
lad, who told him all, and finished by saying he was waiting 
for Jesus to take care of him. The Christian gentleman 

G 



82 



FAMILIES. 



entered into the spirit of the case, and feeling much touched, 
said he came in Jesus' name to fetch the child ; and tlie result 
was, that he was well cared for, and his faith proved not in 
vain." 

FAMILIES. 

TnEP.E is no antidote against the oblivion of time ; gener- 
ations pass, while some trees stand, and old families last not 
three oaks. The greater part of men must be content to 
be as thougli they had not been, and to be found in the 
register of God, not in the record of men" (Sir TJios. Browne). 

If all the money spent upon intoxicating liquors Avere in- 
vested in building houses for half-a-dozen years, there would 
be a new house for every family in the United Kingdom. 

There are now in England half a million families where 
happiness and comfort are impossible, through the effects 
of intemperance; 120,000 persons annually go down to a 
drunkard's grave. What families do they represent ! 

Saved alone. Some time ago, a wife and mother, with 
her three cliildrL'U, went abroad, leaving the husband in 
England. The ship started on the voyage, and was wrecked : 
the mother was saved, the children were drowned. The wife, as 
soon as possible, sent a telegram to her husband : only two 
•words, but words of intense interest to him. The first word 
Avas — Saved. Oh, what joy it caused to spring up in his anxious 
heart ! His wife rescued from destruction ! But the other 
word, alas ! what a different effect it had, as he read — alone : 
Saved alone. AVe read so trying an incident with emotion. 
But the* words call for far more emotion, wdien they are true 
spiritually, of only one in a family saved ! Oh the joy to find 
a whole family in Christ, all linked together in one common 
faith and hope ! 

FAMILY PEAYEE. 

The regular and devout observance of — is one of the most 
marked features of a really Christian home. It is said that 



FAMILY PEAYER. 



83 



the habitual spirit of thankfulness breathed in the family 
prayers of Archdeacon Hare, gave the tone of Christian cheer- 
fulness to the whole household through the day. 

Mr. Joseph Hardcastle, one of the founders and liberal 
promoters of the Eeligious Tract and Bible Societies, ended his 
life of usefulness while engaged in devotion with his family. 
After being for many years a most active and earnest Christian, 
and a supporter of many good works, he was seized with 
paralysis whilst conducting family prayers. Happily, not 
being deprived of consciousness, nor of the power of speech, he 
said, " I could not pass better from the throne of grace to the 
Throne of Glory." 

New Zealand. In the Church Missionary Society Eeport 
for 1880 it is stated, that in many districts where the Missions 
are established, scarcely is there any family where family 
prayer is not observed, and where they are not habitually 
present in the House of God. xirchdeacon Clarke reports of 
the Society's work in the district north of Auckland : " The 
whole of the natives of the district may be regarded as pro- 
fessedly Christian, and their manner of life, I venture to 
say, will compare favourably with the same number of any 
Christian, so-called, community in the world. Take, e. g., the 
practice of family prayer. I do not suppose you could go to 
any Maori hut where morning and evening family prayer was 
not the rule. It has become a habit for old and young to 
attend the Sunday services, and I know of none who sys- 
tematically absent themselves." 

So in Bonny (West Africa), the Church Missionary Society 
Eeport of 1879 says, In nearly every house in Bonny, 
family prayers are now observed every morning and evening." 

Some years ago, a boy went to sea who had the blessing 
of very godly parents, and had been brought up under their 
pious influence. Every morning and nighty at a regular time, 
there was always family prayer at the house. The father 
went to work early, but the mother conducted it, except on 
Sunday morning, when the father was at home. One night 

G 2 



8i 



FATHER — GOD. 



a fearful storm raged at sea, and after using every means, tlie 
captain thought they must be lo^st. During a fearful flush 
of lightning the boy suddenly caught sight of the time-piece, 
which was standing near the captain. " Oh, captain," he 
exclaimed, " don't fear ; we shan't be lost. It's just prayer 
time — I know they're praying for us at home " And so it 
proved : they were not lost. After a while tlie storm ceased. 
Eut there was a marvellous end to the story. The captain 
was struck with a new interest in the boy, and was willing 
to listen while he talked to him of what he had learnt at 
home. The truth in time reaehed his heart, and it spread 
all through the crew ; and before they reached the port, every 
man in that ship hul one had become a new man in Christ 
Jesus. 

Bishop Wilson. The ]>rayer of excellent Bishop AVilsou 
may well be adopted by every parent : 

O Lord, give me skill and conduct, tliat, with a pious, 
prudent, and charit;ible hand, I may govern those committed 
to my care, that I may be wateliful in ruling them, earnest in 
instructing them, fervent iu love to them, and patient in 
bearing with tlieni." 

PATIIER— GOD. 

" You ii AVK A Father still." In the Isle of Wight there 
lived a family called Winslow, consisting of ^h. and Mrs. 
Winslow, and a little girl called Lilly. Mr. Winslow went 
to America to buy a farm, intending, when he had got all 
settled, to return and take his wife and child there too. He 
had written to say everything was ready, and that he hoped 
to be with them about Christmas. But Christmas came 
without his arrival; day after day they waited, but could gain 
no tidings. At last the sad news arrived that the vessel had 
been wrecked, and all on board, except three sailors, were 
drowned. 

At the close of the first day of sorrow Lilly knelt down aa 
usual to say her prayers at her mother's knees. Almost before 



TEAR. 



85 



she knew it, she found herself repeating the familiar words, 
God bless dear father." Her mother uttered a cry of 
agony. " Dear Lilly, you have no father now. 'Nevev say 
that again." The poor child hesitated what to say next. But, 
as she had been used to close with the Lord's prayer, she 
began, " Our Father, which art in Heaven." How beautiful 
the words seemed to them both then. They felt never to 
have understood them so before ; so she said them over again, 
*^Our Father, which art in Heaven," and then a third time. 
Then the child looked up into her mother's face and said, Oh, 
mother, we have a father yet : God is our Father j Jesus said 
so." 

John Ea^ndolph, the American statesman, once said, " I 
should have been an atheist if it had not been for one recollec- 
tion — the memory of the time when my mother used to take 
my little hand in hers, and teach me on my knees to say, 
* Our Father, which art in Hea\^en.' " 

FEAR 

I HAVE READ, says ouc, of a blind man who had an opera- 
tion performed, which was happily successful, and by which 
he obtained his sight. But what was the effect of this? 
Singularly, at first, to produce a strange sensation of fear and 
terror. When he was blind, he used to go about the town 
without a guide, taj^ping with his stick, in full confidence ; 
bat when he got his sight, he felt a strange alarm — every- 
thing seemed so close upon him. He saw danger everywhere 
— in the road, the canal, the street, — until he became used 
to it. 

I have often thought that this must have been one of the 
wonders in the miracles of restored sight Christ wrought upon 
the blind ; they would probably know nothing of anything 
like fear, but would at once enter upon the full enjoyment of 
restored sight. All Christ's miracles were perfect. 

"Father is not afraid — why should IheV^ "I was cross- 
ing Fulton ferry one evening about six o'clock, from the !N'ew 



86 



FEAR. 



York to the Brooklyn side ; the boat was very much crowded, 
as usual at that hour, and as we passed into the slip on 
the Brooklyn side, the tide running very high at the time, 
the boat w^as brought up with a terrible bang, and carried 
away on her beam ends. For a moment everything was in 
confusion : passengers, losing their footing, were thrown 
hitlicr and thither ; the horses were struggling to regain their 
lost balances ; the drivers were halloing at their teams. In 
the midst of the confusion attention was called to a liltle 
child, some five years old, sitting on the knee of one of the 
liackmcn, whose daughter she evidently was. As soon 
as the boat struck, and the noise and commotion broke on 
lier ear, she was filled with alarm and terror, the little chin 
began to quiver, the tears started to her eyes, and a cry of fear 
sprang from her lips ; but turning quickly, and looking into 
lier lather's face, she saw him laughing, and not the least bit 
afraid. Instantly, without Laving anything explained, the 
tears dried, the little mouth straightened out, and the cry of 
fear gave place to a merry laugh. What was it 1 Why, without 
knowing anything, she had just entered into her father's peace 
about the matter. If we could have read that little heart, 
we should have found sonu-thing like this there : * Father 
is not afraid — why should I be, especially as I am in his 
arms]'" {Rev. G. Pentecost) 

It was a saying of the excellent Bishop Mcllvaine on his 
death-bed — ^' It is a dishonour to Christ to be afraid." 

Cardinal Borromeo w\as in his day one of the most large- 
hearted and noble-minded men of his time. He was one of 
the first to institute a Sunday School for the children of the 
poor. It was held in Milan Cathedral, and is continued up 
to the present day. When the plague broke out at Milan he 
was then (1576) staying at Lodi, but could not be restrained 
from hastening to the infected place, and visiting the sick and 
dying. By all these generous and Christian acts he incurred 
much odium in his own Church, and a villain was hired to 
shoot him at the altar. While the choir were singing the 



FIRE. 



87 



verse, " Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid," 
the assassin fired point blank at the cardinal with an 
arquebus. The bullet struck him on the back, but the em- 
broidered cape which he wore warded it off, and the bullet 
dropped to the ground. The cardinal alone was calm and 
resolute. While , all around were in consternation, he con- 
tinued silent in prayer. 

FIRE. 

The fearful losses by fire every year cannot be accurately 
estimated, as so many are private, and unregistered. 

In London, the fires registered were in 1854, 953; 1864, 
1715 ; 1874, 1573 ; 1880, 1871. The most melancholy fact is, 
that so large a proportion of the fires arise from carelessness 
and preventible causes. 

The numerous expedients invented for extinguishing fires 
are not only interesting, but may well be turned into a sym- 
bolic application : as, e. g.y the Firemaiis Respirator, invented 
by Dr. Tyndall, 1870, being a combination of his own respirator 
of cotton wool moistened with glycerine, and Dr. Stonehouse's 
charcoal respirator. Armed with this, a man may remain a 
long time in the densest smoke. Yersmann's composition for 
rendering dresses fire-proof was published 1860. 

The fire escapes and wonderful work of the Fire Brigade 
would furnish a large field-work of illustration, and the fire 
annihilators for extinguishing fire by carbonic acid gas. 

The many remarkable escapes from fire have often illus- 
trated the watchful Providence of God. One very remark- 
able case is recorded by Dr. Leifchild, narrated to him by the 
lady herself, which he refers to as a wonderful illustration of 
Ps. Ixvi. 12:*' We went through fire and water, but Thou 
broughtest us out into a wealthy place." 

lb was on the fatal night, well remembered by many, when 
a dreadful conflagration occurred at St. John's, N'ewfoundland, 
in the year 1846, when at 9 oWock p.m. the cry was heard 
" Fire ! fire ! " On rushing to the window, the lady found the 



88 



FIRE. 



•whole of the opposite side of the street in flames. In a few 
minutes the flames spread to their side, and blew directly 
over the house ; the street was hlled with burning furniture. 
The lady's bal^y was conveyed by the two servants to a place 
of safety, while she and her husband still remained, hoping 
to save the most valuable portion of tlieir property, but were 
prevented by the rapid progress of the flames. They then tried 
to escape, but found every way seemed to be blocked up by 
furniture, or filled with flames. So they gave themselves up 
for lost, and prepared to perish, commending themselves to 
God, and locked in each other's arms. At that moment they 
heard the shouting of the servants, urging tlio bystanders to 
"break oj)en the kitchen window. Tlieir shouts were soon 
lost in tlie roaring of the fierce flames and the tumult of 
the crowd. Yet, exhaustccl as tlioy were, they rai^»^d their 
own voices to their utmost pitch, and wore at last happily heard. 
Instantly the window was dashed in, and they, Avith torn 
garments and burnt persons, were dragged out safely, the living 
monuments of a wonderful preservation, and of their Father's 
merciful deliverance. 

The narrative goes on to say that, having lost their all, they 
determined to return to England, and ])egin life again. The 
lady embarked with her child, leaving the husband to follow, 
after he had arranged his ailairs and recovered from an accident. 
The voyage was at first prosperous?, but after a while she felt 
dissatisfied with several things in the caj^tain and crew. One 
night she felt certain that the vessel was not right. Presently 
it began to sink on one side, and a noise came from the state 
room like the gathering of water over her head. In a few mo- 
ments the ship went over on her beam ends. Wild shrieks 
were heard, and all were in utter darkness, for both fire and 
candles were extinguished. Ey some means two passengers 
procured a light, but by this time all were thrown into the 
ladies' cabin. Soon a tremendous sea struck the vessel ; there 
was one faint cry, and then the stillness of death prevailed, 
and all were in despair. The lady said, that at the first shock 



FIRST THINGS. 



89 



she felt too confused even to pray. But at the next, a 
whole life seemed crowded into the brief space. As if in a 
panorama, the whole scenes and objects of the past became 
present to her view. It was an awful season. But prayer 
prevailed. The light of heaven broke in upon her spirit, 
and she felt that, though the chief of sinners, she was secure, 
and resting upon the ' Eock of Ages.' A third sea then 
struck the vessel, but, singular to relate, struck the ship on the 
opposite side, and it immediately righted, though trembling to 
its centre from the shock and the quivering of the beams. One 
of the passengers rushed on deck, and in a moment the joyous 
shout was heard, " Thank God, we are safe ! " 

The subject of this narrative arrived safely on land, and 
remained some time with her friends near the metropolis. 
They did all in their power to comfort her and her husband, 
who was a truly pious man. But her constitution had suffered 
from the repeated shocks, and upon an epidemic prevailing, 
she was seized with it, and peacefully left this troubled scene 
for the haven of eternal rest. 

The great fire in London in 1666, according to the 
official account published at the time, destroyed 13,200 houses, 
87 churches, 6 chapels, the Eoyal Exchange, the Custom 
House, the jail at JSTewgate, three city gates, the Guildhall, 
and four bridges. It commenced on the Lord's Day, and 
the account says, " Such warm preaching those churches 
never had before." It laid waste 400 streets, and 
drove 200,000 homeless people to take shelter in the 
fields. 

FIRST THIlsrGS. 

*'Keep a list of your friends, and let God be first on 
the list, however long it may be. 

" Keep a list of the gifts you get, and let Christ, who is 
the Unspeakable Gift, be first. 

*^Keep a list of your mercies, and let pardon and life 
stand at the head. 



90 



FISHERIES. 



" Kepp a list of your jojs, and let the joy unspeakable 
and full of glory be first. 

" Keep a list of your hope-^y and let the hope of glory be 
foremost. 

" Keep a list of your sorrows, and let sorrow of sin be 
first. 

*^Keep a list of your enemies, and however many there 
may be, put down the * old man ' and the ^ old serpent ' lirst. 

" Keep a list of your sins, and let the sin of unbelief be 
set down as the fu-st and worst of all " [Ilorne Words), 

FISIIErJES. 

Taking tue accredited estimates, it is probable there are 
about 180,000 persons engaged in the fisheries round the 
coast of England, Scotland, Ireland, and the Isle of Man. 

In a valuable article on the fisheries, in the * Encyclopaedia 
Britannica,' Sir John Barrow estimates the annual produce 
of the foreign and domestic fisheries of Great Britain at 
£8,300,000. This, however, is generally thought to be over- 
stated. McCulloch remarks that £5,500,000 would be a 
full estimate. 

In a report of tlie fisheries of the United Kingdom, 
published in 18GG. the commissioner says, *' The produce of 
the so^ around our coasts bears a fiir higher proportion to that 
of the land, than is generally imagined. The best fishing- 
grounds are much more prolific of food than the same extent 
of the richest land. Once in the year an acre of good land 
carefully tilled produces a ton of corn, or two cwt. or three 
cwt. of meat or cheese. The same area at the bottom of tlie 
sea, on the best fishing-grounds, yields a greater weight of 
food to the persevering fishermen every week in the year. 
Five vessels belonging to the same owner, in a single night's 
fishing, brought in 17 tons weight of fish — an amount of 
-wholesome food equal to that of 50 cattle or 300 sheep. The 
ground which these vessels covered could not have exceeded 
an area of 50 acres." 



FLATTERY. 



91 



The quantity of fish, taken every year is supposed to be 
about 1,000,000 tons. 

By the Eeport of the Sea-Fishing Trade Committee, 
published in 1883, it appears there are 10,357 vessels and 
boats registered in England, 14,165 in Scotland, 459 in the 
Isle of ]\lan, and 307 in the Channel Islands, in all a total 
of 25,268 vessels. The approximate number of men and 
boys employed is 94,764. It is one of the many proofs of 
social benevolence and of Christian zeal, that so much is now 
done for the welfare of these brave fellows. (See Sailors,) 

FLATTEEY. 

Truths. " We seldom heartily praise those who do not 
admire us." Few are wise enough to prefer reproof to 
treacherous flattery." " When people blame themselves, it is 
sometimes a secret plot to extort praise from others." " The 
much praised should be much prayed for.'' 

The lianas, or giant creepers of Brazilian forests, have been 
compared to the treacherous attachment of flattery. These 
tropical parasites generally succeed in killing the mightiest 
trees, around which they fasten themselves ; and then, when 
the tree falls, are themselves dragged down, and left to waUow 
unpitied in the black mire of the impenetrable forest. 

FLOWEE LETTEE MISSIOK 

The origin of this most valuable work is said to have 
been, that an invalid lady in 1866 became one of the cor- 
respondents of the Cams- Wilson soldiers' work, and devised 
the plan at first for soldiers in hospital. The poor men were 
so charmed with these gifts, that it became necessary to have 
them lithographed — the flower only in outline, and painted by 
the hand. In this way more than 100,000 copies were circu- 
lated in the last three years, and now hand-painting cannot 
keep pace with the demand. The plan is therefore more 
generally adopted of having them printed. This has proved a 
most successful mission, and who can tell how much moral and 



92 



FOOD. 



spiritual good has been effected by these pretty bearers of 
good tidings ] 

FOOD. 

The capability of work in the human race is naturally 
greatly dependent on the proportion of food taken. It is 
said the Eni^lish and the Americans are the best fed people 
of the present age, and therefore they accomplish the greatest 
amount of work, and are most prominent for power and 
courage. A computation made shows that the average con- 
sumption of meat per inhabitant is, for the United States, 
120 lbs.; for the United Kingdom, 110 lbs.; France, GG lbs.; 
Switzerland, 51 lbs.; Germany, 48 Ib.^. ; Scandinavia, 45 lbs.; 
Itussia, 44 lbs. ; the Low Countries, 40 lbs. ; Austria, 39 lbs. ; 
Si)ain, 20 lbs. ; Italy, 28 lbs; Portugal, 20 lbs. The United 
Kingdom, the United States, and Russia, consume each 8 
bushels of grain per inliabitant ; France and Germany each 
7 bushels ; Austria, the Low Countries, and Spain, each 6 
bushels; Italy, Scandinavia, Switzerland, and Portugal, each 
5 bushels. 

The improved condition of the food consumed in our own 
country may be shown by a few facts. In 17G0, in England 
and Wales, there were no less than 880,000 persons who fed 
on rye ; now it is computed there are not more, in the whole 
of Great Pritain, tlian 20,000 rye-eaters. The poorest washer- 
woman sits down to breakfast with tea from the east and 
sugar from the west, and the operative classes are frequently 
in the habit of living more luxuriously than the upper and 
middle classes. (See Luxuries.) The amount spent in the 
L'nited Kingdom on bread is about £70,000,000 a-year ; on 
butter and cheese, £35,000,000; for milk, £30,000,000; 
for tea and coffee and cocoa, about £20,000,000. 

Taking in aU the meat, provisions, fish, fruit, &c., the 
value of the foreign food imported in 1881 was £176,792,352. 
The value of our home-grown produce it is diflScult to 
estimate. 



FORBEARANCE^ DIVINE. 



93 



FOEBEAEAXCE, DIYIN-E. 

The REPENTANT SON. A father had a very bad son, who 
ran away from home, and proved an ungrateful and rebellious 
prodigal. He had refused the most kind invitations of that 
father to return home and comfort his old heart. He had 
even gone so far as to scoff at his father and mother. But 
.one day a letter came, telling him his father was dead, and 
asking him to come and attend the funeral. At first he 
determined not to go, but after a while conscience pricked 
him, and, as a matter of form, he took the train and went 
to the old home, sat through the funeral service, saw his 
father buried, and returned to the house as cold and hard as 
ever. But when the old man's will was read, the ungrateful 
son found that, notwithstanding all his baseness, his father 
had remembered him with the rest of the family, and left 
him an inheritance, and at last his heart was broken. It was 
too much, that all those years of his rebellion and ingratitude 
the father had never ceased to love his son. What a picture 
of the unwearying forbearance of " the Father of mercies.'* 
It is just the way God deals with us. He bears with sinners 
in spite of their sins, and many a heart is broken by just 
being brought to see and feel this truth. 

FOEEIGJN-EES IN ENGLAND. 

In 1871 THERE WERE 139,445 foreigners residing in Eng- 
land, of whom nearly nine-tenths were born in Europe, 
34,000 being Germans, 20,000 French, &c. Of the whole, 
the proportion of males to females was almost two to one. 
Sixty-six thousand one hundred and one were living in the 
London radius. Very few were engaged in agricultural pur- 
suits ; they were chiefly employed in commercial, educational, 
or literary work for the better classes amongst them, and 
different forms of service for the lower. 

A recent number of the * London City Magazine ' gave an 
account of their work amongst the foreigners in London. 
The number of French living in London is estimated at from 



94 



FUNERALS. 



20,000 to 24,000, tliougli this does not inclnrle the Swi.^s 
and Belgians, who form a good part of the French flock. 
The great proportion have been brought to London in hope- 
of their gaining a better living by their superior handicraft. 
They tliink we do not understand the art of millinery, and 
cooking, and fancy -svork. Some do succeed, but many find 
it a miserable failure. London is strewn with ^vrecks of 
broken fortunes and blighted hopes, A modern writer draws 
a striking contrast between the Huguenots, who were mostly 
God-fearing men, who brought their handicrafts, and laid 
the foundation of many branches of our commerce, and 
the present crowds who flock to our shores for the sake 
of gain, and of whom a large part are steeped with the 
French frivolity and inlideliiy, and often lind only bitter 
disappointment. 

The number of persons resident in England wdio were born 
abroad were (excluding India and the colonies) in 1841, 
39,44G; 1851, G1,70S; 18G1, 107,832 ; 1871, 139,445. 

FUNERALS. 

WuAT A STRANGE VAUiKTY tlicrc is in tlic burial of our 
dead, — the simple funeral in the quiet churchyard, beneath 
the shadow of the rugged elni and solemn yew ; the sad and 
lonely battle-field — the blood-stained plains of Waterloo, the 
Held of Tklarathon, the defile of Inkerman, the highway be- 
tween Cawnpore and Lucknow, the heights of Gravelotte ; 
the stately pyramids of Egypt ; the catacombs of Home, 
where it is said, seven and a half million Christian bodies lay 
entombed under the rocks on which the seven-hilled city 
stands ; the beautiful cemeteries, like Pere la Chaise, in Paris, 
with its streets of tombs, where, by every kind of device, the 
names and noble deeds of illustrious Frenchmen are recorded. 
AVell, it is doubtless praiseworthy to honour the dead, as a 
tribute to their departed worth, and for the sake of their 
example to the living ; yet there is too often a sad mockery in 
the pageantry of death. 



rUNEEALS. 



It was an ancient remark, the illustrious dead have the 
whole world for their resting place/' 

Coffins. The Athenian heroes were buried in cofifins of 
cedar, because of the fragrance and incorruptibility of the 
wood. The Eomans used stone or marble. Alexander the 
Great is said to have been buried in a coffin of gold. The first 
mention of wooden coffins in England is that recorded of King 
Arthur, who was buried in the trunk of an oak, a.d. 542, 

It is computed that about £4,000,000 are spent every year 
in England upon funerals, of which a considerable part is 
laid out in wasteful extravagance and display. 

The Jews have a custom when they enter a cemetery to 
bury any of their dead, to bend themselves three times to 
the earth ; then taking the grass of the grave, which has 
been newly dug, and casting it behind them, they chant the 
words of the prophet, " Thy bones shall spring up again 
like the grass, my brother." 

Archbishop Leighton, when he met a funeral going to 
the church one day, was accosted by a friend who had just 
left the sacred building, and asked whether he had been and 
heard the sermon ; the archbishop replied solemnly, I have 
seen a sermon." 

The Countess of Huntingdon, when a child of nine 
years old, was so struck at the sight of a coffin, that she 
always traced the beginning of her serious views of truth to 
that time. 

The resurrection hope. A little child lost her mother, 
a kind Christian mother, and for a time could not be consoled. 
A friend took the child to the grave, and bid her plant a seed. 
For a time no result appeared, and the child would still keep 
grieving. But one day a beautiful shower of rain fell, and 
there appeared a tiny green leaf, which grew stronger and 
bigger, until at last it was covered with a sweet and lovely 
flower. The child was taken often to the grave, and was 
taught by the application of the emblem, to understand the 
happiness of the Christian's resurrection hope. 



9G 



FUNERALS. 



LITTLE CHILD SHALL LEAD THEM.'* Mr. Moody 

relates the following incident in the pastoral experience of 
the Rev. Archibald Brown of the East-end Tabernacle, 
Eurdett Eoad, E. 

A little girl, eight years old, who had been a godly child foi 
some time, was taken sick, and sent for Mr. Lrown to come 
and see iier. When he came she said to him, I want you 
to speak at my funeral." But," said he, " we hope you are 
not going to die, Nellie." 

*' Oh, yes," she replied; **but I am not afraid to die." 
*^ But we want you to get better, and grow up to be a useful 
Avoman, to help us in the Lord's work." 

No," she urgeil, " I am going to die, and I want you to 
speak at my funeral." " Why do you want me to do that]" 
Ever since I have been a Christian I have been trying to 
lead my father to Christ, but he won't come. lie won't go 
and hear you preach, l)ut I know he will be at my funeral, 
and if you should speak there, it may be God will speak to 
him through you, and he may be led to trust in Christ in 
that way." 

To gratify lier wish, 'Mr. Brown promised that he would 
speak at her funer.il, but when she died he was himself ill 
and unconscious with fever. A few Sundays after he got 
Well, a man came U[) to him at the close of the evening 
service and said, " You don't know me, Mr. Brown; I am 
little Nellie's farther. I have come to tell you that her God is 
my God. I want to tell you something you don't know, and 
that Nellie did not know. When she was pleading with 
you to speak at her funeral, I was behind the door, and heard 
it all. Her words pricked me to the heart, and I could not 
help but give myself to Ciirist." 

JoHX Wesley directed in his will, that six poor men 
should have twenty shillings each for carrying his body to 
the grave. For I particularly desire that there may be no 
hearse, no coash, no escutcheon, no pomp, except the tears of 
those that loved me, and are following me to Abraham's 



GAMBLING. 



97 



bosom. I solemnly adjure my executors, in tlie name of God, 
punctually to observe this." 

To express the same wish was the last act of Queen 
Adelaide, and the request of Sir Eobert Peel on his death- 
bed. 

GAMBLING. 

In connection with the Thames Church Mission, the 
following story is told in their report. On one occasion a 
Scripture-reader boarded a vessel, and found the men gambling 
greedily. He took a tract from the bundle he carried, and 
throwing it upon the " trick " just won, took up all the cards 
and said, " Mine takes yours.'' The men all looked up in angry 
astonishment, and then the bold servant of God reasoned with 
them upon the folly and sinfulness of gambling, and showed 
them how frequently bad endings resulted from the indulgence 
— instances which the narrator himself had known. The 
men listened very attentively. At length one of them rose 
suddenly, and going up, threw all the cards over the ship's 
side, saying, " They shall never ruin me or any one else." 
A prayer was offered up, and the men all shook hands with 
the Scripture-reader, promising him never to play cards for 
money again. 

What is spent. Crockford's gambling-house cost, with its 
furniture, £100,000, and the receipts of the proprietor have 
been reckoned at £10,000 for one year. Is it as easy to find 
as much money for any iiseful purpose 1 

Mr. Colquhoun reckoned some time ago, that the money lost 
annually in all the gambling-houses in London, so far as could 
be ascertained, was £7,225,000 ; and at Crockford's £1,000,000 
is said to have been lost in one single night. 

Monte Carlo. For several years before the form^ation of 
the International Association for the Suppression of the Gam- 
ing Tables at Monte Carlo^ the clear profits of the casino 
were over 25,000,000 francs per annum. The Prince of 
Monaco received 250,000 francs yearly for the concession, 

H 



93 



GOD. 



besides a share in the profits and other sums ; and it is 
computed that the sum lost annually by players cannot have 
been less than 50,000,000 of francs. AVhat losses and misery 
dues this represent. The list of suicides is perfectly appalling. 

GOD. 

Plato declared, that God was difllcult to find, and im})os- 
sible to know if found. 

Atheists. They that think there is no God sometimes, do 
not think the same at all tini(»s. 

Coxcl:ptions of. Our conceptions of Deity are too gener- 
ally made from our notions of things as we can understand 
them. We take the best (pialities we find in ourselves, and 
try to multiply them to infinity : and this is our conception 
of Deity! But there may not be the least similitude. There 
may be a great variety of perfections in the Deity, of which 
there are no seeds in ourselves. The true method is, to draw 
our conceptions of the Divine Being from what He has declared 
of Himself, in His works and revelation, and to receive this 
Avith the deep humility which becomes us. 

God cannot bo enjoyed but as He is loved ; nor loved but 
as He is known ; nor known but as He is revealed in Christ ; 
nor even that, but as it is made clear to us by the Holy 
Spirit. 

The teacher in one of the mission schools at ^Vfaulmein, in 
Burmah, gave permission to a pupil, a dear child of eight or 
ten years of age, to go home to see his father during the holi- 
days. The father was a blind idolater, and bringing his son 
into an inner room, -where he kept the images of his gods, he 
said, See, these are my gods. I can see them with my eyes, 
but you cannot see your god." The boy answered, **My 
father, you can see your gods, but they cannot see you ; I 
cannot see my God, but He can see me." 

Persian, Jew, and Christiax. A Jew entered a Peisian 
temple, and saw there the sacred fire. He said to the priest, 

Why, ought you worship fire 1 " Xot the fire," replied the 



GOODNESS OF GOD. 



99 



priest ; it is to us an emblem of the sun, and of his animat- 
ing light. Then asked the Jew, Do you adore the sun 
as a Deity ? Do you know that he also is a creation of the 
Almighty ? " The priest answered that the sun was to them 
only an emblem of the invisible light Avhich pervades all 
things. The Israelite continued, Does your nation distinguish 
the image from the original 1 You call the sun your god, and 
kneel before the earthly flame. You dazzle the eye of the 
body, but darken that of the mind ; in presenting to others the 
terrestrial light, you take from them the celestial. The 
Persian asked, *^How do you name the Supreme Eeing '? " 
" We call Him Jehovah Adonai, that is, the Lord who was, 
who is, and who shall be." " Your word is great and glorious, 
but it is terrible," said the Persian. A Christian approaching, 
said, " We call Him, Abba Father." Then the Gentile and 
the Jew regarded each other with surprise. Said one, " Your 
word is the nearest and the highest, but who gives you courage 
to call the Eternal thus 1 " " The Father Himself,^' said the 
Christian, who then expounded to them the plan of redemp- 
tion. Then they believed, and lifted up their eyes to heaven, 
saying, " Father, dear Father," and joined hands, and called 
each other brethren. 

GOODXESS OF GOD. 

A GOOD MAN" once said, " Through a long life I have proved 
that God is good, and that all He has permitted in my lot 
has been intended either as food or medicine." 

" I have often wondered," said another, " at what seems tons 
the waste in creation, that so many beautiful things in nature 
are never seen by us, — millions of lovely flowers and animals, 
in desert places, where the foot of man has never trod. But 
I have also thought. May not the blessed angels adore the 
wisdom and goodness of the great Creator in His works of 
nature? Suppose we never gaze upon these lost beauties, 
may not they?" 



H 2 



103 



GOSrEL. 



GOSPEL. 

Among the tribes of the Africans, the Eechuanas have for 
many years attracted the notice of Christian missionaries. 
Their men consider the shedding of a tear a grievous weak- 
ness, and very degrading. As soon as they are circumcised 
(which takes phace when they arrive at manhood), it is 
forbidden tlieni to weep ; neither tlie loss of their cattle, nor 
the death of their wives and children, nor the most acute 
pain, makes them wet their eyelids. Tears are reserved for 
women. AA^liat was the joy of the missionaries, when one day, 
after ten years of apparently fruitless labour, they perceived 
tears flowing down the dark cheeks of these sturdy warriors. 
The greatness of the compassion of Jesus broke down their 
resolution and stoicism. Sometimes there was scarcely a 
dry eye in the House of God. Men, women, and children, all 
wept together. AVhat a proof of the mighty power of the 
**old, old stury" — the gospel of God's love ! 

AVlIY IS IT NOT MORE WELCOMED? At the close of thc 

last war with Great Britain, Dr. AVayland was in the city of 
Kew York. It hapi)ened that, on a Saturday afternoon, a 
ship was discovered in the otfing, supposed to be bringing 
home the comnussioners at Ghent from their unsuccessful 
mission. The sun had set gloomily before any intelligence 
from the vessel had reached the city. At length a boat 
reached the wharf, announcing that a treaty of peace had been 
signed, and was only waiting for the action of the government 
to become a law. The men who hrst caught the good news 
rushed in breathless haste into the city to make it known, 
shouting as they ran, Peace, peace, peace ! '* Every one 
who heard the word repeated it. From house to house, 
from street to street, the news spread. The whole city was in 
commotion; men bearing lighted torches were flying to and 
fro, shouting, " Peace, peace, peace ! " Thus every one became 
a herald, and it was reasonable and proper. Alas ! that when 
the Lord God has offered to our world a treaty of peace, of 
fiir greater value, so few are found to tell out the good news. 



GRACE. 



101 



GEACE. 

The axgel in the maeble. •* I remember when I was a 
little boy, a j^oor sculptor, who had a rough shed in my 
mother's back yard, where he worked away all the day with 
mallet and chisel on his marble. It was a great delight for 
me to watch him at his work. One day there was hauled 
into his studio an unusually large piece of marble, uneven, 
rugged, and soiled. But it was mounted upon the two 
'horses,' ready for the artist's chisel. When I entered the 
studio he was standing by with his hand resting affectionately 
upon it, as though he were in love with the huge mass. . . . 
I asked him, ^ Mr. M — , what are you going to make out of 
that '? * Looking up kindly into my face, he said, ' My boy, 
I am not going to make anything out of it. I am going to 
find something in it.' I did not quite comprehend what he 
said. ' Why, what are you going to iind in it 1 ' He replied, 
' There is a beautiful angel in this block of marble, and I 
am going to find it. All I have to do is to knock off the 
outside pieces of marble, and be very careful not to cut 
into the angel with my chisel. In a month or two you will 
see how beautiful it is.' And then returned his intent gaze 
into the marble. I remember puzzling a long time over that 
' angel in the marble ' ; and not until later years did I under- 
stand that the angel the sculptor saw there, and which he 
was going to find with his mallet and chisel, was put into the 
marble by his genius, and his work was to realize his ideal " 
(Bev. G. Pentecost), 

The great doctrine of salvation by grace has been thus 
illustrated : Suppose a poor man through some misfortune 
owes £1000, and has nothing to pay it with, what can he do ] 
The case may excite much sympathy, and friends wish to help 
him. One, a poor man like himself, comes forward and offers 
him a vshilling. Well, the intention is good, but what can a 
shilling do towards paying £1000'? This is like those who 
would help the sinner, but they have no power to do it. A 
second friend comes forward, and says, feel deeply for 



102 



GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND. 



you, and will give you £500.'* This is apparently a much 
greater help, but it is practically as little able to pay the whole 
debt. It is like the Scotch girl whose mother was deeply con- 
cerned for her salvation, and her daughter said to her, Well, 
mother, Christ has finished His part, and you must finish 
yours." A third friend comes forward, and offers to present 
the i)oor man Avith £1000 ; he was able to do it, and he was 
willing. Xow, then, tlie debtor was free. So with the sinner 
when led to see that Christ must do the wliole ; like the 
little girl who was asked how she knew that Christ had a 
favour for her, and replied, Because I know I'm a sinner, 
and lie died for sinners." 

GREAT BKITAIX AXD IRELAND. 

Population, according to tlie census in 1881, was 
35,21G,5G2 (England, 24^,008,391 ; Wales, 1,359,895; Scot- 
land, 3,734,441 ; Ireland, 5,159,839; Channel Islands, 
87,731 ; army and navy, and mercliant seamen abroad, 
242,844). 

Acreage, by the same report, 77,828,893. 

The greatness and power of Great Britain it is impossible 
to descril)e. It is without parallel in the history of the world. 
As a nation, wo rule now over one-tliird of the surface of the 
globe in area, and over one-fourth in population. Our posses- 
sions abroad are in area sixty times larger than the parent 
state, including 3,500,000 square miles in America, 1,500,000 
in Asia, 1,000,000 in Africa, and 2,500,000 in Australia. 

The value of the exports of British produce and manu- 
facture in 1840 was £1 Ss. per head of our population. In 
1881 it was £6 ISs., an increase of nearly 252 per cent. 

With all our national faults, let us never forget to 
thank God that we are still professedly a Christian country, — 

— When, in the coronation service, the Queen is presented 
with the sword of state, the Archbishop says, " With this 
sword do justice, stop the growth of iniquity, protect the holy 
Church of God, help and defend the widows and orphans, 



GEOWTH^ CHRISTIAN. 



103 



restore the things that are gone to decay, maintain the things 
that are restored, punish and reform what is amiss, and im- 
prove what is in good order ; that, doing these things, you 
may be glorious in all virtue, and so faithfully serve our Lord 
Jesus Christ in this life, that you may reign for ever with 
Him in the life which is to come. Amen." 

When presented with the Imperial robe, the Archbishop 
again says, *^Eeceive this Imperial robe and orb, and the 
Lord your God endue you with knowledge and wisdom, 
with majesty and with power from on high. The Lord 
clothe you with the robe of righteousness and with the 
garments of salvation. And when you see the orb set upon 
the cross, remember that the whole world is subject to the 
power and empire of Christ our Eedeemer; for He is the 
Prince of the kings of the earth, King of kings and Lord of 
lords. So that no man can reign happily who derives not his 
authority from Him, and directs not all his actions according 
to His laws." 

And when the Bible is presented, the following sublime 
words are used : " Our gracious Queen, we present you with 
this Book, the most valuable thing the world affords. Here 
is wisdom ; this is the royal law ; these are the lively oracles 
of God. Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the 
words of this Book ; that keep and do the things contained 
in it. For these are the words of eternal life, able to make 
you wise and happy in this world, nay, wise unto salvation, 
and so happy for evermore, through faith which is in Christ 
Jesus, to whom be glory for ever. Amen." 

GEOWTH, CHEISTTAK 

" It is a singular property of the sago palm-tree, that when 
young and tender, it is covered with strong sharp thorns, 
which effectually guard it from injury by wild animals. As 
soon, however, as the tree, shooting on high, has grown strong, 
and is no longer a tempting morsel to wild hogs and other 
animals, the thorns fall off. It is very often thus with young 



HABITS^ BAD. 



Christians. They frequently display an asperity and sharp- 
ness in their treatment of others that answers sometliing 
in their case to the thorns of the sago palm. True, there is a 
use in this ; their very roughness and angularity is a great pre- 
servation in creating around them, as it ^yere, a bristling fence, 
and cutting them off from contact with dangerous foes. Eut 
as faith and love grow, as experience is gained, and they 
become established in grace, their life, though not a whit less 
faitliful, becomes less severe and forbidding. Now that they 
are not in so mucli danger from the world as formerly, the 
thorns fall off, their views with age are less harsh, and their con- 
duct more gentle and tenderly compassionate " [Rev. J. Neil). 

IIATUTS, BAD. 

Only a tin. An overseer in a calico mill found a pin 
whicli cost the company nearly £100. IIow could that be? 
Well, calicoes after they are printed and washed and dried, 
are smoothed by being jjassed over heated roUei-s. By some 
mischance a i)in dropped, so as to lie upon the principal 
roller, and indeed became wedged into it, the head standing 
out a little from the surfiice. Over and over went the roller, 
and ruuiid went the calico, winding upon another roller, until 
the piece was measured off. Then another began to be dried 
and wound, and so on, till a hundred pieces had been counted 
oir. These were not examined immediately, but removed 
from the machinery and laid aside. When at length they 
came to be examined, it was found there were holes in every 
piece, and only three quarters of a yard apart. ]S^ow, in 
every piece there were from thirty-five to forty-five yards, 
and at ninepence a yard that would count up to about £180. 
Of course the goods could not be sold now as perfect, but 
only as remnants, at about half the price they would have 
brought had it not been for that single pin ! So it is with 
the power -of an evil habit. That pin damaged forty hundred 
yards of new print. How little we reckon the truth of that 
text, " One sinner destroyeth much good." Though it may 



HAPPINESS. 



105 



not be found out at first, '*be sure your sin will find you 
out " at last. 

HAPPmESS. 

There are many theories as to what helps to make happi- 
ness, but none more true than '^a receipt" which has been 
given by a Christian man. Happiness lies in three things 
— doing what God bids you ; going where God sends you ; 
takmg what God gives you. 

When the question is asked — "Are you happy]" — with 
many persons it would be more fitting, " Are you not un- 
happy 1 " Ought you not to be, if without hope and without 
God in the world "1 

Scelvestre — the common salutation in Iceland — means, 
"Be happy.'' 

Don Joie de Salamanca, the great Railway contractor of 
Spain, well said one day in returning thanks for his health 
being drunk, ^'Believe me, gentlemen, the man who can 
satisfy all his wishes, has no more enjoyment." 

Dr. Payson on his death-bed gave his dying testimony : 
" Every bone seems almost dislocated with pain ; yet, while 
the body is thus tortured, the soul is perfectly happy and 
peaceful, more happy than I can express.' ' 

It is a good rule, given by a wise man. To enjoy life 
more, strive to enjoy it less. 

Abdert^ian. It is recorded of the Moorish Caliph of Cor- 
dova, Abderman, that after his death the following paper 
was found in his own handwriting : Eifty years have 
elapsed since I became Caliph. I have possessed riches, 
honours, pleasures, friends ; in short, everything that man can 
desire in this world. I have reckoned up the days in which 
I could say I was really happy, and they amount to fourteen." 

Hannah More, when dying, was pained by some one speak- 
ing of her good deeds. " Talk not so vainly," was her immediate 
reply. I utterly cast them from me, and fall low at the 
foot of the Cross;" and then, her face lighting up as with 



lOG 



HARVEST. 



a sunbeam, she exclaimed, "Joy," and so passed from the 
sliadows of earth to the rest of Paradise. 

HAEYEST. 

Facts and Lessons. "We should do well always to re- 
member, tliat (1) the harvest is the end of a long process; it 
would be vain to look for a good result unless due care and 
attention has been given to each separate step. Men must 
plough and sow before they can expect to reap. (2) The 
harvest is a striking proof of the dependence of men upon 
the sovereign will and pleasure of the great Creator. AVliile 
God has promised that throughout the whole world, *Svhile 
the earth remaineth, seed time and harvest shall not cease," 
lie reserves to Himself, according to His own good will and 
wisdom, the times and seasons " and the distribution of His 
favours in particular cases. The Jews have a proverb, There 
are four keys God keeps in His own hands — the key of the 
earth, the key of the clouds, the key of the womb, and the 
key of the tomb." And so it is. It is man*s appointed lot 
to till and dress the ground ; but with all the best care he 
can bestow, it avails nothing unless God give the ground its 
vegetative power, and makes the sun to shine and the rain 
to water the earth. Professor Leoni Levi, in a lecture on 
the value of a good harvest," stated, a short time ago, that 
every day of clear sunshine, during the forty days after St. 
S within* s, is worth £1,000,000 to the trade and manufactures 
of this country. (3) The whole world is within a month 
every harvest of universal starvation. The produce of the 
earth is ordained to meet its annual want, but the provision 
is for twelve months, not for thirteen ; and the store through- 
out the world would soon be exhausted did the harvest 
universally fail. (4) The importance of a good harvest is 
seen by the fact that in England alone, the variation of one 
shilling an acre in the price of corn makes a difference to the 
producer of £2,350,000, and of course of a proportionate 
difference to the consumer. 



HEAVEN. 



107 



The loss arising from deficient harvests for the last six 
or seven years has been exceedingly heavy. A writer in 
the * Times/ January 1879, taking into account the loss of 
produce, the increase of land not cultivated, &c., estimated 
the enthe loss at not less than £97,000,000. Mr. Bright, 
writing also to the ^ Times,' estimates it at still more. He 
says, The best authorities calculate that during the harvests 
of the last three years, the sum of probably not less than 
£200,000,000 sterling has been lost to the country, as com- 
pared to the results if we had had the blessing of genial 
summers and average harvests." 

Harvest wages in England.— In 1350, Id. a day; 1460, 
2cl ; 1568, 4d ; 1630, 6d. ; 1760, 1^. ; 1800, 2^. ; 1850, 3^. ; 
1857, 5s. ; and since increasing. 

The difference in the end. An ungodly farmer one day 
met his Christian neighbour, also a farmer, and began to 
taunt him, " Why, my corn grows as well as yours. What 
difference does it make ^ all your prayers, and talking about 
God's blessing 1 1 don't see any good you'll ever get by it 1 '^ 
The Christian neighbour looked the man full in the face, and 
replied, Friend, God does not pay every week, but He does 
pay in the end.'* 

HEAYEK 

What a contrast is the Scriptural view of the purity of 
heaven to the carnal and sensual view of every other system, 
the Mahommedan, for instance. 

There will be no money in heaven, no feasting, no dress, 
save such as may be of a spiritual nature. What hajDpiness 
could a carnal being feel in such a state 1 

A minister once called to preach a funeral sermon, stood 
at the head of the coffin, and said. When he came to the 
parish years ago, he used to look over the river at the bottom 
of the valley with little interest, as he cared for none of the 
people there. But after a while a young man came to his 
house, and married his daughter, and took her to a home 



108 



HEAVEN. 



just across the river. From that time he was constantly 
looking out of the window, feeling a different interest in 
those who dwelt there. There is a river that separates us 
from many whom we love. Tbc}^ have gone to a new home, 
but they and we are not far apart, and we cannot but often 
look across the valley, longing to meet again. 

Music. Well may we say of the anticipated pleasures of 
tlie heavenly choir, as good Izaak AValton said when he heard 
tlie sweet singing of birds : Lord, if Thou hast provided 
such music for sinners on earth, what hast Thou in store for 
Thy saints in heaven]" 

Discoveries of new wonders. We read that Newton, 
when, after years of patient toil, he was just about to step on 
the summit of that mountain which no human foot had 
climbed before, and to catch a glimpse of the unseen glory of 
that ocean of truth which he alone had reached, felt the 
depth of his joy so intense that he was overcome, and wept. 
How will it be with us when we climb the heavenly heights, 
and find out those new discoveries of truth, of which we 
never dream in this state of imperfect knowledge] 

"Danger] Xo ; all iiorE.'^ I want to talk to you 
about heaven,'' said a dying father to a member of his family. 
" We may not be spared to each other long ; may we meet 
around the throne in glory, one family in heaven] " Over- 
powered at the thought, his beloved daughter exclaimed, 
" Surely, dear father, you do not think there is any danger]" 
The good man calmly and beautifully replied, Danger, my 
darling ! Xay ; do not use the word. There can be no 
danger to the Christian, whatever may happen. All is right, 
all is well. God is love — all is well— everlastingly well — 
everlastingly well.'' 

Dr. Payson on his death-bed well said : It has often 
oeen remarked, that people who have been into the other world 
cannot come back to tell us what they have seen ; but I am 
so near the eternal state that I can see almost as clearly as if 
I were there ; and I see enough to satisfy myself, at least, 



HELL. 



109 



of the truth of the doctrines which I have preached. I do 
not know that I should feel at all surer had I been really 
there.'' 

HELL. 

Strangers, when they visit the coal-fields, are often 
desirous of seeing how the mining operations are carried on, 
and go down with the miners into the coal-pits. One day a 
gentleman was going down with a miner who was a simple- 
hearted Christian, and as they were let down into the 
darkness, the humble miner was shgcked at the profane 
language of the gentleman, who added an oath or some 
blasphemous expression to almost every sentence he uttered. 
Down and down they went, when the gentleman said, " I 
wonder if it is as far to hell as it is to the bottom V "I 
don't know, sir," replied the miner, "how far it is to hell, 
but judging from your language, I fear if the chain were to 
break, you'd be there in a minute." 

Colonel Chatteris, before he died, said, " I will give any 
person .£30,000 if they can prove to my satisfaction that 
there is no such place as hell." No one came forward to 
make the attempt. 

HELP, DIVINE, 

• — IS ALWAYS AT HAND. How different to the help we can 
depend upon from human hands. An illustration of this 
occurred in the incident recorded in connection with Captain 
Hedley Vicars, — 

He was wounded in one of those sanguinary conflicts 
which took place before Sebastopol. His wound was not 
necessarily mortal ; the surgeon understood the nature of the 
wound perfectly. He felt sure it could be cured, and he 
was ready to do all he could for the suffering soldier. But 
still Hedley Vicars died from that wound, and why | 
Because in the tumult of that terrible morning, on the grey 
heights of the Crimea, the regiment which Hedley Vicars 



110 



HOME. 



commanded was carried far away from the tent that held 
supplies. A bandage was necessary to tie up the hleeding 
artery. But the bandage was in the distant tent, and before 
that tent could be reached the brave soldier was no more. 
In speaking of the circumstance afterwards at a public 
meeting, one of the friends of Captain Yicars said, ''If 
there had been a bandage within reach, if the tent of 
supplies had been half-a-mile nearer, Hedley Vicars might 
have been alive to-day." 

HOME. 

How LITTLE do people generally realize the value of the 
sweet word " home.'' There are many houses in our land 
that are houses inhabited, but not homes ! By the census 
reports, it appears that there were in England and Wales in 
1851, 3,278,039 inhabited houses; in 1871, 4,259,117; in 
1881, 4,557,309. In London alone there were in 1881, 
486,286 houses, averaging 8 persons to each house (the 
average number for the whole of England and Wales being 
5-37). 

Homeless. By the census of 1851 there were discovered 
18,249 persons who had no home nor place to sleep in, but 
passed the night in barns, under hedges, railway arches, hay- 
stacks^ &c. 2,000 children now sleep out of doors in 
London every night. A large number of persons too are 
always of a migratory character. It is said there are 50,000 
or 60,000 who never remain in the same place more than 
two or three months. 

In 1881 there were 37,303 uninhabited houses in England 
and Wales. 

There are three sayings, " Manners make the man " — that 
is true ; " mind makes the man " — that is also true. But 
there is another no less true — " home makes the man." ^ 

'' Home, sweet home.'' Mr. Payne, the author of that 
familiar hymn, was a most genial-hearted man, but very poor. 
He used to tell how often he had walked the streets of 



HONESTY. 



Ill 



London and heard liis own words sung, as lie passed under 
the windows of some splendid mansion, whilst he himself 
w^as hungry, and scarcely had a home to shelter him. He 
had been to Berlin and Paris and other great cities of 
Europe, and passed in each and all through the same hitter 
experiences. Of late, by the authority of the American 
Government, his remains were removed from Tunis, where he 
was buried, when Consul-General of the States. There is a 
memorial window in the English church at Tunis, placed 
there by public subscription, through the exertion of the 
Eev. E. H. Shepherd, formerly chaplain, with an inscription : 
In memory of John Howard Payne, the author of ^ Home, 
Sweet Home ' ; " and in the centre light is the motto, " The 
Lord hath brought him home." 

There are now, it is computed, 500,000 so-called homes 
in England in which home happiness cannot even be looked 
for, because of the terrible effect of drunkenness. 

About £70,000,000 is paid every year in the United 
Kingdom for house-rent. 

ho:n'esty. 

" Honesty is the best policy," a well-meant maxim, but 
one that may easily misguide. It implies that human con- 
duct may be best determined by policy, which is a dangerous 
principle. Honesty is principle ; pohcy may be the opposite 
of principle. Honesty should never be named in the same 
category with policy ; for it adopts a course of conduct 
because it is right, while policy adopts a course because it will 
promote personal interests. A veritable rogue at heart may 
for a time practise honesty, and yet be a rogue in the end. 

" Under the plea of expediency , also, honesty has often been 
cast aside. Expediency is hand and glove with policy. What 
does not promise to promote personal interest is not expedient. 
It is a nice pillow for selfishness. Honesty is well enough, 
and even necessary, provided it be expedient. It may seem 
very inexpedient to practise the Golden Eule, and then, of 



112 



HOSPITALS — INFIRMARIES. 



course, it will not be practised. Eight and wrong become 
matter of choice simply under this pliable rule. What will 
contribute to one's success is right ; what will not is wrong. 
Thus the widest departures from rectitude are provided for. 
Individuals find it easy to commit even flagrant crimes under 
this rule, and Governments inflict fearful wrongs upon their 
subjects in the name of expediency" {Thayer), 

HOSPITALS— IJ^FIEMAEIES 

— MAY BE safely referred to, as one of the fruits of Christi- 
anity. Hospitals for the infirm and diseased were almost, if 
not entirely, unknown among the ancient heathen. There 
was no institution of the kind in Athens, Sparta, or Pagan 
Eome, nor amongst the Mahommedans. It was the result of 
the teaching and example of Christ, to care so kindly for the 
bodies as well as for the souls of men. 

There is a touching story told by the historian Sozomen, 
which is said to give the origin of the first organized hospital. 
A grievous famine, it is said, with all its inseparable miseries, 
fell upon the city of Edessa. Its venerable deacon, Ephrem, 
came from his cell, where he had betaken himself for medita- 
tion and prayer, in aid of the suffering multitudes. Pilled 
with deep sympathy at the sight of so much sufl'ering, he was 
no less moved with the indifl'erence of the rich men of the 
city, and reproved them boldly for not coming forward with 
help and succour. The defence they made was indeed a 
poor one. They were willing to help, "but," said they, 

in an age of such universal selfishness and corruption, they 
knew no one to whom they could with confidence entrust their 
gifts.'' Ephrem replied : *^ What, then, do you think of 
me 1 " The answer was instant and unanimous. " Then," he 
said, I will be your almoner. Eor your sakes I will under- 
take the burden ; " and receiving their willing contributions, he 
caused at once 300 beds to be placed in the publio porticoes 
of the city for fever patients : he relieved also the famishing 
crowds who flocked to Edessa, and rested not till the famine 



HOSPITAL SUNDAY. 



113 



was stayed and the plague had ceased. Then, once more he 
returned to his solitary cell, and in a few days breathed his 
last. 

In the middle ages the lazar-honses (of which there were 
more than 100 in England), the rooms set apart in the mon- 
asteries, etc., were efforts to show kindness to the sick and 
suffering. St. James's Palace now stands on the site of an 
ancient lazar-house. 

There are now in the United Kingdom many liospitals. In 
London alone about 145, general and special, many of which 
are richly endowed and most liberally supported, the total cost 
being about £600,000 a year. 

In 1874 died Benjamin Attwood, who gave away anony- 
mously .£1,250,000, in cheques of £1000 each, from time to 
time, to the various hospitals and infirmaries for the sick. 

HOSPITAL SUNDAY 

— A BENEVOLENT Scheme of modern times, now established 
in many of our largest cities and towns. It is said to have been 
begun in Glasgow about 1844, in Manchester 1870, and in 
Birmingham (chiefly through the exertion of Canon Miller) in 

1873. The amount received has gradually increased, and was 
last year divided among 93 hospitals and about 52 dispensaries, 
allowing a small proportion for surgical appliances. The gross 
receipts since the collection was fairly organized have been 
—1873, £27,700 (collected from 1200 places of worship) , 

1874, £29,817; 1875, £26,034; 1876, £27,692 ; 1877, 
£26,083 ; 1878, £24,904; 1879, £26,501 ; 1880, £30,200 ; 
1881, £31,859; 1882, £34,424 (given by 1350 congregations); 
1883, £31,600. 

In London, the Metropolitan Hospital Sunday is mainly 
due to the exertions of Dr. Wakley, editor of the ^ Lancet.' 
In 1882 the largest sum was collected since its commence- 
ment in 1873, of £33,000. Since the beginning it has. 
raised £284,000. 

Besides this, a Metropolitan Hospital Saturday Fund was 

I 



114 



HUMILIATION. 



commenced in 1874, to receive tlie contributions of clerks, 
domestic servants, artisans, and otliers. The idea originated 
in Glasgow thirty years ago, and £30 was the first year's con- 
tribution. The Glasgow hands," instead of tens, now give 
thousands. London is cliiefly indebted for tliis valuable help 
to Captain Charles Mercier, the chairman of the Fund, and 
Lord lirabazon. Captain IMercier was impressed with the value 
of the eflbrt, and seeing no reason wliy the working m(^n of 
London should be behind those of Glasgow, Liverpool, and 
other j)rovincial towns, invited a large number of them to his 
house to talk the matter over, at which Sir S. I). Scott was 
the chairman. The 17lh of October, 1874, was fixed upon 
for the first nosi)ital Saturday. One hundred thousand 
cxjilanatory handbills had before been circulated amongst 
working men, and public meetings held in the districts where 
they chielly congregated. A monster meeting w^as held in 
Hyde l\irk, under the presidency of Archbishop i\Ianning. 
The results of all the elTort^ made was a collection for the 
first year of £(J4G:^ ; in 1875, £5:U0; 1870, £.5525 ; 1S77, 
£4500; 1878, £0528; 1879, £6192 ; 1880, £GG04 ; 1881, 
£8372 ; 1882, £8872. 

Altogetiieu, it is estimated that not less than £1,000,000 
has been raised throughout the country, and each year the 
amount shows a steady increase. The movement has spread 
to Dublin, New York, and other important cities. 

HUMILIATIOX. 

The chief object of conversion is not to fill the vessel of 
the heart, so much as lirst to empty it. 

^' Take me — break me — make me," should be the cry of 
all, who desire to be moulded as "vessels of honour" for 
God's glory. 

Bible Society. The British and Foreign Bible Society is a 
noble example of being ready to take every occasion of present- 
ing the Word of God, whether at times of general sorrow or 
of universal rejoicing. At the time of the calamitous inunda- 



ICE. 



115 



tion of the shores of the Baltic in 1872, throngh the wise 
counsel of Mr. Davies, a large number of Eibles were dis- 
tributed amongst tjie sufferers. An inscription was placed 
on the blank leaf headed by the appropriate verse, 1 Pet. v. 
6, 7 : Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand 
of God, that He may exalt you in due time : casting all your 
care upon Him ; for He careth for you ; " with the words, A 
gift from the British and Foreign Bible Society." The same 
j)]an was followed, with almost the same inscription, and a 
space left for the recipient's name, in commemoration of the 
calamitous floods in the south and west of Germany in 1882-3, 
when 8000 copies were distributed (about 3000 to Protestants 
and 5000 to Koman Catholics) at an outlay to the Bible 
Society of between £400 and £500. Who can tell the 
comfort the message of life brought to many sorrowing hearts 
at such a time ! 

ICE. 

There are many facts about ice, which might be easily 
used as illustrations of truth. 

It is well known, of course, that stagnant water freezes 
much sooner than flowing water. 

Sea water freezes less rapidly and with greater difficulty, 
since the salt and other ingredients detain the caloric longer. 

A singular phenomenon is, that salt is separated in the act 
of freezing, and precipitated to the bottom ; so that ice from 
sea water sometimes affords water fit to be drank. 

The more severe the cold, the greater the firmness and 
hardness of the ice. The ice of the Polar regions can 
sometimes scarcely be broken with a hammer. 

Professor Glaishier, on " the atmosphere," says : " It 
has been ascertained that ice two inches in thickness will 
bear the weight of a man, four inches in thickness the weight 
of a person on horseback ; and when six inches thick it will 
bear eight-pounders placed upon sledges. At eight inches 
field artillery may cross it in safety ; the heaviest of carriages, 



116 



ICE. 



an army, or a large crowd are in no danger when standing 
upon ice eleven or twelve inches thick." 

Water asleep." When some native Christians came 
over from ^Madagascar some years ago, and were shown a 
picture where ice was represented, a thing they had 
never seen in their own country, and were told what it 
was, they exclaimed, " Ah, we understand, it is water 
asleej). " 

AVnv SHOULD we not believe. "I never dnrst make 
my own uhservation or experience the rule and measure of 
things spiritual, supernatural, or reflating to another world, 
because I should think it a very had one, even for the visihle 
and natural things of tliis. It would he judging like the 
Siamese, wlio was positive it did not freeze in Holland, 
because lie had never kn »\vn such a thing as froziui water 
nor ice in his own country. I cannot com[)ruliend why any 
one who admits the union of the soul and body should pro- 
nounce it impossible for the human nature to be united to 
the Divine, in a manner incfEable and incompreluMisible l)y 
reason. Neither can I see any absurdity in admitting that 
sinful nun m;iy become regenerate, or a new creature, hy the 
grace of (lod reclaiming liim from a carnal life to a si)iritual 
life of virtue and holiness. And since the being governed 
by sense and appetite is contrary to the liappiness and per- 
fection of a rational creature, I do not at all wonder tliat we 
are prescribed self-denial. As for the resurrection of the dead, 
I do not conceive it so very contrary to the analogy of nature, 
Avhen I behold vegetables left to rot in the earth, rise up 
again with new life and vigour; or a worm, to all appearance 
dead, change its nature; and that which in its first being 
crawled on the earth, become a new species, and fly abroad 
with wings. And, indee 1, when I consider that the soul and 
body are things so very different and heterogeneous, I can 
see no reason to be positive that the one must necessarily be 
extinguished upon the dissolution of the other, especially since 
I find in myself a strong natural desire of immortality ; and 



INCONSISTENCIES. 



117 



I have not observed that natural appetites are wont to be 
given in vain, or merely to be frustrated " {Berkeley). 

Power of the sun. Professor Tyndall, in his ' Heat as a 
Mode of Motion/ says, that the heat given out by the sun is 
so strong that it would suffice^ in one hour only, to boil 
700,000 million cubic miles of ice-cold water. 

IP. 

Philip of Macedon, it is said, when once an enemy sent 
him an insulting letter, threatening, if he entered and took 
his city, to slay every person in it, and lay it waste ; as an 
answer, simply tore off the first word of his insulting threat 
and returned it — " If 

I^s^CO^s^SISTENCIES 
— the dark blots upon a fair garment. 
— in a professed Christian are like ragged buttons on a 
court dress. 

How natural it is to observe a defect, whilst we take no 
notice of what is right. Travelling one day with a lady, we 
came to a house, when she exclaimed, Why, there's a 
broken window ! " Is it not so in life ^ We make no remark 
upon the things that are in order ; it is the broken window 
that attracts our attention. We observe the weak point in a 
neighbour's character, the defect in his work, rather than 
commend and encourage what is good. 

Inconsistencies, though to be lamented, are no proof of 
total falseness. A diamond with a flaw is better than a 
pebble without one. A lawless Englishman does not prove 
that the laws of England are bad. 

On the wrong side of the line. A remark was made to 
a good old Wiltshire labourer, that some excuse should be 
made for a neighbour who had done wrong on the ground of 
ignorance. "Ah," said the old man, "there is a main deal 
said about excuses, but I have learned to observe this by all 
I have seen. I seem to see the Lord's people standing on 



118 



INFANTS. 



one side of a line, and all the worldly people on tlie other. 
JS'ow, I've observed that if one of the Lord's people does so 
much as half put his foot across the line, all the people begin 
to shout ' Look there ! ' Can I believe that the people who are 
so sharp to see us if we go wrong one little step, know that 
they are themselves on the wrong side altogether]" 

IXFxVXTS. 

The Foundling Home at IIong-Kong. Perhaps many 
of our young peopU3 liave heard of the baby towers of 
China. It is well to remind them how thankful they should 
be, for their kind mc^thers and happy homes. In Hong- 
Kong, one of tlie ]arg<\st cities in Cliina, m:iy be seen a 
larc^^e tower, having at the heiglit of four feet a hole. 
Chinese wonien may be often seen bringing a little load 
in tli' ir arms, tlirowing it in this hole, and then, despite the 
j)itiful cry of tlieir bal)ies, running away as fast as they can. 
So true it is, that even a woman may lose a mother's nature. 

About thirty years ago there was a very pious and zealous 
pastor living at l>erlin named Kanak, whose heart had been 
touched by the case of these poor little outcasts. He 
established a Foundling House at Hong-Kong, where now 
about nin»'ty Chinese girls, thus thrown away, have been 
preserved and taken care of and trained by four Christian 
young ladies, the house-father being a German cleigyman. 
A great blessing has gone out from that house. It has been 
the first home of all German missionaries going out to China, 
and the grown-up girls have Tjecome the wives of Christian 
teachers, helping them to evangelize the dark country. 

IXFIDELITY. 

There are two kinds of infidels — intellectual, sometimes 
"honest doubters"; and moral — those who profess that 
there is no God, because they had rather there was none. 

It requires more credulity to be an infidel than belief to 
be a Christian. Let any of those who renounce Christianity 
write down fairly in a book all the absurdities that it lias 



INFIDELITY. 



119 



been proposed we should believe instead of it, and they will 
see which is more reasonable to expect men to accept ! 

The world is now traversed by missionaries in almost 
every part, and it is easy to point to the untold blessings 
their teaching has conferred upon the darkest places. What 
can infidelity show as a parallel to this ] Can it point to any 
single country it has raised from barbarism ] l^o ; the 
infidel had rather stay at home, nursing his pride and railing 
at the Gospel, which he cannot equal. 

Seven questions to put to every infidel. What answer 
can he give to them 1 

(1) Can you say you have ever read the Bible carefully 
through, and you could now bear to be examined in it ? 
(2) Have you not read, whatever part you have read, 
rather desiring to pick holes in it, than honestly to find out 
the truth 1 (3) What do you propose to put in its place, 
that shall be more likely to be beneficial to mankind ? (4) 
How do you account for the inequalities in the moral 
government of the world ] (5) How do you account for 
the unhappy deaths of Voltaire, Eousseau, Hume, Tom 
Paine, &c. 1 How do you account for it, that most infidels 
are men of immoral lives ] (7) How is it that Christianity 
has done so very much more to benefit the world at large 
than infidelity has ever attempted 1 

Hume. It is said, the mother of the historian Hume used 
to love the Bible, but her son persuaded her to give it up. 
When a time of sickness came, she wrote to him, asking him 
for some other comfort, as he had taken away what she had 
before. It is said Hume never answered the letter. 

Talleyrand. A story is told of him, that once a French 
infidel was determined to uproot Christianity, and thought he 
had formed a system of his own, which would soon super- 
sede that founded by Jesus Christ. His efforts, as might be 
expected, proved a disappointment. He came to Talleyrand, 
and asked his advice. "Oh," said Talleyrand, ''I should 
recommend you to give out that you are going to ofi"er your- 



120 



INFIDELITY. 



self to be crucified, and then to raise yourself from the grave 
on the third day, and that will wonderfully help to recom- 
mend your system, I have no doubt, if you do it." 

Hold out. An infidel was dying, and beginning to give 
way, was rallied by the friends who surrounded his dying 
bed. " Hold out," they all cried ; " don't give way." 
*'Ah," said the dying man, "I would liuld out if I had 
anything to hold by, but what have 11" What a contrast 
to the poor dying Christian woman leaving the world in 
peace and hope. When asked if she had any fear : Fear, 
why should I fear ] Can a sinner sink upon the unfailing 
Eock?" 

Voltaire. Some years ago," says the Hev. D. E. Ford, 
in his * Damascus,' " a gentleman, well known and highly 
respected in the n^ligious world, narrated in my hearing the 
following incident : AVhile on a tour with a college 
companion, the latter was seized with an alarming illness at 
Paris. A physician of great celebrity was called in, and 
requested to recommend some confidential and experienced 
nurse. Ho mentioned one, and added, * You may think 
yourself happy indeed shouLl you bo able to secure her 
services ; she is so much in re<|ue.st amongst the higher 
circles here, that there is little chance of finding her disen- 
gaged.' The gentleman at once ordenid liis carriage, went to 
her residence, and, much to his satisfaction, found her at 
home. He brieliy stated his errand, and requested her 
immediate attendance. * But before I consent to accompany 
you,' she said, * permit me, sir, to ask you a singular 
question. Is your friend a Christian 1 ' * Yes,' he replied, 
* indeed he is — a Christian in the best and highest sense of 
the term — a man who lives in the fear of God. But I 
should like to know your reason for such an inquiry.' 
^ Sir,' she answered, * I am the nurse tliat attended Voltaire 
in his last illness, and for all the wealth of Europe I would 
never see another infidel die.' 

Credulity of infidels. It is related of iNTapoleon, that 



INFLUENCE. 



121 



when Marshal Diiroc, an avowed infidel, was once telling a 
very improbable story, giving his opinion that it was quite 
true, the Emperor quietly remarked, There are some men 
capable of believing everything but the Bible." 

— CAUSE OF. A gentleman eminent in the literary world, 
had his mind, in early life, deeply imbued with infidel senti- 
ments. He and one of his companions often carried on 
their conversation in the hearing of a religious but illiterate 
countryman. This gentleman, having afterwards become a 
serious Christian, was concerned for the countryman, lest his 
faith should be shaken. One day he asked him whether 
what he had heard so often advanced, had not produced that 
effect upon him. " By no means,'* was the reply ; "it never 
made the least impression." " ]N"o impression on you ! why, 
you must know that we had read and thought on these 
things, much more than you had an opportunity of doing." 
**0h, yes," said the other; " but your conversation plainly 
showed me that you had never read nor thought much about 
the Bible. Besides, I knew your manner of living, and I 
knew that to maintain such a course of conduct, you found 
it necessary to renounce Christianity." 

INFLUENCE. 

No HAIR is so small but it has its shadow. 
- Like an unseen string that draws, and the power in the 
magnet that attracts. 

Our teaching may go beyond our own experience, but our 
influence will not. 

We speak louder by our lives than by our lips. 

A discouraged Christian seldom has much influence for 
good. 

The worst kind of sinners are those who help to make 
other sinners. 

Under-currents. It was long a subject of wonder how 
the water is always flowing into the Mediterranean Sea, 
whilst there is apparently no outlet, till it was explained by 



122 



INFLUENCE. 



ascertaining its unrler-currents. In 1683, such a strong 
under-current was discovered, that goes out by the Straits of 
Gibraltar. A vessel full of stones was lowered, and the 
current was found to be so strong that it dragged the boat 
along, despite the upper-current. 

Dtt. Arnold. The wonderful influence he exerted over 
others, what was it] asks his biographer. "It was not so 
much an enthusiastic admiration for true genius, or learning, 
or eloquence, — it was a sympathetic thrill, caught from a spirit 
that was earnestly at work in the world, whose work was 
healthy, sustained, and constantly carried forward in the fear 
of God — a work that was founded on a deep sense of its 
duty and its nature. 

A WALKING gospi:l. A gentloman who liad a strong 
prejudice against woman's work, when he watched Miss 

M , one of the jNIildmay deaconnesses, confessed, — " If 

that be a specimen of lady workers, I can now well understand 
how much good it may do, for I call her a walking gospel.*' 

Sir John Lawrence. " It lias been said that Dellii was 
taken, and Imlia saved, by the personal character of Sir John 
Lawrence. The very name of Lawrence represented power 
in the nortli-wijst provinces of India; and the same might be 
said of his brother. Sir Henry Lawrence, who organized the 
Punjaub forces, that took so proniineut a part in the captui'e 
of Delhi. Both brothers inspired those who were about 
them with perfect love and confidence'' (Sntiles). 

A missionary going to a foreign land, beginning a new 
sphere of labour, is a fine illustration of the power of infl.uence. 
How do the people judge about him] He cannot speak their 
language ; cannot understand their habits. Deeds, not words, 
must speak. A life full of goodness and kindness, the power of 
love and kindness, must have been the key to unlock the door. 

Captain Bate records in his journal when at sea, that he 
commenced service on board, and the men grew increasingly 
attentive. He read a chapter from the Bible, not a long one, 
used the Lord's prayer and one or two extempore prayers. 



JEWELS. 



123 



He adds, " It has answered well ; the fellows are happy, and 
so am I.'' On which the biographer says, " The truth was, 
his own daily walk was so transparently holy, and his manly 
face so beamed with kindness, that his men felt themselves 
unconsciously attracted to him.'' The fellows are happy, 
and so am I." Here was the secret ! 

The SHORT PERIOD of the lite of one man," Sir James 
Macintosh wrote to Wilberforce, when the latter had carried 
his Slavery Abolition Eill, may be, if well and wisely 
directed, sufficient to remedy the miseries of millions of 
ages." On the other hand, no words can be adequate to 
describe, nor any mind to take in, the evil wrought by one 
bad man, especially if there be great power, or rank, or 
wealth misapplied and misdirected. 

JEWELS. 

An Indian lady lay on the couch of her sick-room reading 
a novel. She was the wife of an Englishman, and came to 
live in England. In her own country she was well known 
for her wealth, and envied as the possessor of the finest 
collection of jewels in that district. But after a few years 
in England her health failed, and consumption threatened to 
take her fic m all her boasted treasures. Herself a Mahom- 
medan, she found no comfort in her own religion, but was 
happily waited on by a jiious nurse, who always kept her 
Bible by her, longing to put it into the lady's hand. One 
day the lady said, " iN'urse, you must tind it very dull being 
shut up all day in this room with me, and having nothing to 
amuse you.'* *'0h no, ma'am ; I don't find it dull; I am 
always cheerful, and never feel lonely." The lady thought 
this strange, but bid her go and fetch the box that held her 
jewels, that it might help to amuse her, as she thougiit. 
The nurse fetched the box, and the jewels were brought out, 
and a number spread upon the table. " !Now, nurse, 
wouldn't you like<to have some*?" ISTo, ma'am, not at all; 
I have myself much finer jewels than yours." What ! 



124 



JEWS. 



how can that be ? Mine are the finest jewels of the country 
from which I came. Where are yours 1 You never wear 
tliem." The nurse held up her Bible and said, " My jewels 
are in tliis book." The lady thoup^lit there were one or two 
hidden among the leaves, and said, Take them out, and 
sliow tliem to me." But the nurse answered, ''Oh, ma'am, 
my jewels are so precious; I can only show you one at a 
time.'' Then she opened the Book and read : I have 
learned in wliatsoever state I am, therewith to be content." 
She told lier mistress, that though a poor woman, she was 
full of happiness, and that she had a treasure laid up in 
heaven. It pleased God to make the word arrest the atten- 
tion of the rich lady. " Why, nurse, I never heard anything 
like that before. How happy you must be ! I wish I could 
feel the same. Show me another of your jewels." But the 
nurse saw that she was tired, and thought it Wixs enougli for 
one day, but promised to show her an(jther jewel on the 
morrow ; so next day the lady asked, and the nurse read : 
" This is a faithful saying, and wortliy of all acceptation, that 
Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners." The Holy 
Spirit was at worlc in the lady's heart ; she began to feel 
the need of a new nature. ILn splendid jewels lost their 
brilliance ; the novels lost their interest. She souglit the 
pearl of great price, and found it. Her body wasted day by 
da}'-, but her spirit found new life, and she became a bright 
and blessed monument of God's sparing mercy. 

JEWS. 

XuMBER. It is very difficult to ascertain the exact number 
of Jews now in the v^^orld. Some accounts estimate it as 
7,000,000, others 10,000,000. The Society for Promoting 
Christianity among the Jews give it as proximately about 
10,000,000. Of these, upwards of 3,000,000 are in the 
Eussian Empire; 1,000,000 in Austria; about 500,000 in 
the northern parts of Germany ; probably about 80,000 in 
Great Britain and Ireland ; and 120,000 in the United States. - 



JEWS. 



125 



It is to be observed, that the greatest number of Jews 
in Europe are located around Palestine. 

The number of Jews in Palestine is very small, probably 
about 15,000 to 20,000. In the whole of Palestine, there 
are not so many Jews as there are in London. It is a singular 
coincidence, that there is only a single Jew now residing in 
^^'azareth, and he is a carpenter called Joseph ! 

The health and longevity of the Jews as a race is 
remarkable. Dr. Eichardson (' Diseases of Modern Life,' 
p. 195) says, From some cause or causes, this race presents 
an endurance against disease that does not belong to other 
portions of the civilized communities, amongst which its 
members dwell." This resistance dates from the first to the 
last period of life. Hoffenden finds that in Germany, from 
1823 to 1840, the number of still-born children among the 
Jew^s was 1 in 39, and of the other races, 1 in 40. Meyer 
finds that in Fiirth, children from 1 to 5 years of age die 
in the proportion of 10 per cent, among the Jewish, and 
of 14 per cent, among the Christian population; and M. 
Neufville, dealing with the same subject from the statistics 
of Prankfurt, gives even a more favourable proportion of 
vitahty to the Jewish child- population. Continuing his 
estimate from the age named on to riper years, the value of 
life is still in favour of the Jews ; the average duration of 
the life of the Jew being 48 years and 9 months, and of the 
Christian, 36 years and 11 months. In the total of all ages, 
half of the Jews reach the age of 53 years and 1 month, 
w^hile half the Christians born attain the age of 36 years 
only. A quarter of the Jewish population is found living 
beyond 71 years, but a quarter of the Christian population 
is found living beyond 59 years and 10 months only. The 
civil State Extracts of Prussia give to the Jews a mortality 
of 1"61 per cent. ; to the whole kingdom 2' 62 per cent. 
To the Jews they give an annual increase of 1*73 per cent. ; 
to the Christians 1*36 per cent. The effectives of the Jews 
require a period of 41-^ years to double themselves; those of 



126 



JEWS. 



the other races, 51 years. In 1819, Prussia returned 1 
death to every 40 of the Je^vs ; and 1 for every 32 of the 
remaining population. 

The Jews also escape the great epidemics more readily 
than other races. 

It is a striking fact, that a Jew is scarcely ever found in 
our prisons, and scarcely ever convicted of any gross crime. 
Suicide is extremely rare with them. Their observance of 
the fifth commandment, and their care for their own poor, are 
very noteworthy. 

According to AVhittaker's Almanack, there are now about 
60,000 Jews in the United Kingdom, who possess 80 syna- 
gogues, with about 100 ministers and readers. 

It is said, there are now about 3000 converted Jews in 
England, and about 120 converted Jews, clergymen of tho 
Church of England. Some of our most learned comment- 
ators have been converted Jews : — Nicholas de Lyra, 
Tremellius, Xeander, Delitzsch, De Costa, ]\Iargoliouth, &c. 

The PRESENT ASPECT OF THE Jews is full of eucouragement. 
Never was there known such a change in their feelings as a 
body, as is seen now. AVhilst as a nation they are still most 
bitter against Christianity, the prejudice is in numberless 
cases giving way, and there are now thousands of Jews who 
are known to be reading tlie Xew Testament, and are gladly 
sending their children to Christian schools. The number of 
converts is rapidly increasing, and a spirit of enquiry 
spreading among this most remarkable and interesting 
people. 

The chaplain of Erederick William I. of Prussia, when 
asked by the king one day what he thought the best evidence 
of the truth of Christianity, replied, **The Jews, your 
Majesty.'^ 

Judaism and Christianity compared. It is recorded, that 
when the safety lamp for miners was first taken down a 
pit where it had never been known before, the miners, who 
had worked by such a poor dim light as a small revolving 



JEWS. 



127 



steel gave by the sparks struck off from a flint, were amazed. 
As soon as they saw a man coming along the workings of the 
mine with what seemed to be a naked flame in his hands, 
they shouted at him with curses, and bid him go, for he was 
bringing certain death and destruction to the pit. But when 
the man advanced, in the confidence which that wonderful 
invention, the safety lamp, gives, sure of his own kind 
intentions ; and when he drew near the deluded miners, and 
showed them that what they thought was danger was really 
safety, and what they deemed to be death was meant to 
be their preservation from death, their anger was turned to 
amazement, and their bitter curses into admiration and thank- 
fulness. Tins illustration was beautifully applied to the 
Jews, in one of the Anniversary Sermons, by Dr. Flavel Cook, 
as showing the change in their mind when they receive 
the gospel, from bitter hatred to faith and joy. As with 
St. Paul, they have learned to glory in that light of life 
which, in their unconverted state, was the subject of their 
blasphemy and curse. 

The land of Palestine. " Some say the present land is 
worn out. It is a mere skeleton, the soil, the flesh is gone ; 
stones, stones everywhere, or bones. Such was my first 
impression when I saw it, in the winter. Of course it 
presents a very difi'erent aspect to those who spend a few 
weeks there in the bright green spring. The soil is not lost 
— it has been washed from the hill-sidss for centuries by 
tropical torrents, and is lying deep in many a valley. The 
stones have their uses. Terrace those bare and dreary hill-sides, 
as may be seen in the valley of St. John, and the wilderness 
will blossom, and abound with fig-tree, vine, and olive. 
Then there are the valleys for the corn. At present, the 
surface only scratched, and no care taken, there are only six 
weeks between seed-sowing and ingathering ; three harvests 
may be garnered in the year ; and where the land has been 
wisely dealt with, not thirty, sixty, or a hundredfold, but one 
thousand two hundred fold has been the rate of increase." 



128 



JOY. 



^'A land tvifJwut a people. The present Arab and mongrel 
population in no sense possess it. They might fold their 
tents to-morrow, and silently steal away, and leave no trace of 
their savage tenancy but ruin and decay. A people without 
a land. Where do the Jews dwell in a land of their own ? 
We are told that it is coming within the sphere of possible 
politics, and I have endeavoured to show some pliysical 
reasons in favour of it, omitting prophetic, and that I do not 
deem them the most important, but because probably the 
most familiar, that Judijea, the faithful laud, and the Jews, 
the unfaithful people, will again be re-united, and that at no 
distant day {Rev. C. II. Banninrj). 

JOY, 

Eeligious. " At tlie outset, Do not think that this means, 
a seventJi-lieaven rapture. It is not given to many of us 
to soar into such heights, much less to live there. We want 
a joy that can walk along life's dusty road, and do a good 
day's work, and thrive amidst bustle and home cares ; that, 
like the caged canary, can sing in the kitchen, and that loves 
the prattle of the children. 'Eejoice in the Lord alway.' 
It is not to be the short-lived offspring of passing excitementi 
that shouts and weeps, and then cools down ; an April day 
of sunshine and shower, that ends in a night of sharp frost ; 
nor is it the childlike merriment of good spirits, nor a natural 
hopefulness that easily forgets the past, and doesn't trouble 
much about the future ! It is a calm, deep), settled gladness 
in the LordP 

"There are three simples growing just by the gates of the 
King's Garden, and whoever will cultivate these three, and 
mix them equally, shall have the balm and oil of gladness. 

The first of these is the sturdy plant Confidence. There 
must be this confidence, the superlative degree of hope, that, 
in the dark to-day, sings of a bright to-morrow ; that does not 
only think about, but believe in the assurance, that the loving 
Father in heaven orders all things, and makes them work out 



JUSTICE, 



12U 



-vvhat is good, and kind, and blest ; but that lives and rests in 
the assurance. As in a factory, where whistling bands, and 
whiiring wheels, and darting shuttles, and thousand threads, 
bewilder and confuse the stranger, the maiden who tends the 
frame sits by, singing her song untroubled, for she knows 
full well that every toin and shooting shuttle, and all these 
thousand threads, are Avorking out the pattern. Hers it is to 
watch and mend the broken threads. Her name is Confidence, 

" Confidence must be mixed equally with another simple, 
found only in the King's Garden — a little lowly plant that 
grows on the bank of the river, and bears a flower like the 
Forget-me-not ; the name of it is Contentment, It is a rarer 
plant than the other, and yet he that grows confidence, can 
grow this alongside of it. Contentment — that keeps the 
desires level with the condition. When much is taken, 
contentment reckons up how much is left, and turns the evil 
round to find a better face upon it, thinking of the worse 
that might have been. Cultivate this contentment, or else 
there cannot be the joy in the Lord, and having confidence 
and contentment, put in gratltnde. It will enrich it, and 
make it to sparkle." 

" The opposite to this joy is not grief, not sorrow. He 
who was " the Man of sorrows," is He who was anointed with 
the oil of gladness above His fellows. The real kill-joy is 
w^orry, anxious fretting, wearying care, that blights and 
withers all like a frost ; that gnaws out the very heart of 
gladness. But nine-lived though it be, here is the death of 
it — Rejoice in the Lord'' {Rev. Mark Guy Fearse). 

JUSTICE. 

Be just before generous. The Kev. Rowland Hill had 
just finished an exhortation, strongly recommending the 
liberal support of a certain very meritorious institution. The 
congregation was numerous, and the chapel crowded to excess. 
The discourse being finished, the plate was about to be 
handed round to the respective pews, when the preacher 

K 



ISO 



JUVENILE CRIME. 



made a short address to the congregation : — " From the great 
sympathy I have witnessed in your countenances, and the 
strict attention you have honoured me with, there is only 
one thing 1 am afraid of — that some of you may feel inclined 
to give too much. Is'ow it is my duty to inform you, that 
justice, though not so pleasant, should always be a prior 
virtue to generosity; therefore, as yuu will all immediately 
"be waited upon in your respective pews, I wish to have 
it thoroughly understood, that no person will tliink of 
l»uttiug anything into the plate who cannot pay his debts 
llandhouk of lllastrations. 

JUVENILE CRHIE. 

The following remarks are quoted from the Report of the 
DirL^ctors of Convict Prisons, for the year ending ^March 31, 
1882. The effects of the Elementary Education Act are now 
beginning to be felt. It appears that while the total 
prison population has almost stood still for the last eleven 
years, being only 10,100 on Dec. 31, 1870, and 10,221 on 
']\farcli 31, 1882, which is, of course, e([uivalent to a decrease 
relatively to the total population of the country, which has 
increased in that period from 22,712,106 to 26,250,000; the 
})ro])ortion of younger criminals has largely decreased. The 
number who are between 15 and 24 years of age is now 
only 1957, as compared with 2948 in 1871. The number 
Avho are between 25 and 34 is practically the same, viz., 
*3885, as against 4067; and the number above that age has 
increased from 3144 to 4378. A similar diminution in the 
population of younger criminals has occurred within the 
last few years in local prisons, and these facts tend, in turns, 
to show that the development of the criminal classes is being 
arrested by the better training wliich the younger members of 
the community now receive, and the care taken to direct 
those, whose position and circumstances might lead them to 
take up with criminal courses, into a more wholesome condition 
of hfe." 



KINDNESS. 



131 



The full force of tliese figures is better illustrated if we 
point out, that had juvenile crimes increased in the same 
ratio as the population, over 3400 young persons would now 
he serving terms of penal servitude, against the 1957 who are 
actually found in our convict prisons. 

Turning to the Eeport of the Commissioners of Prisons, 
under whose care are all prisoners not sentenced to penal 
servitude, we find that whilst at present the tendency of the 
prison population is slightly to rise, the percentage of those 
in confinement under 30 years of age has decreased from 
59*4 per cent, in the year ending March 31, 1879, to 56*6 in 
the year ending March 31, 1882. The Commissioners in 
their Report confirm in a remarkable way the observations 
of the Directors, for we find them saying : — Men take to 
crime in the earlier rather than in the more mature periods of 
life ; and means for its effective repression, are to be sought 
much more among the agencies for securing a good teaching 
of the neglected part of our population in their early years, 
than in any form of punishment which can be devised.'' 

Sunday School Teachers, and all engaged in our Ele- 
mentary Schools, may well take encouragement from these 
statements ; and whilst endeavouring, by God's help, to lay a 
good foundation in the minds of those committed to their 
care, seek also, by every means in their power, to maintain a 
watchful influence over them in those critical years of life, 
which are likely to shape their future courses when tempta- 
tions to evil are most strong. 

KIIN^D^TESS. 

Ad ANSON, THE French BOTANIST, was about seventy years 
old when the Revolution broke out, and amidst the shock 
he lost everything — his fortune, his places, and his garden. 
He became reduced to the lowest straits, and even wanted 
food and clothing, yet his patience and ardour remained the 
same. The Directory eventually gave him a small pension, 
which Kapoleon doubled. Before he died, a clause in his 

K 2 



132 



KINDNESS. 



"will directed that a garland of flowers, provMed by fifty -eight 
families, wlioiii lie had established in life, should be the only 
decor itioii of his conin, a slii^dit but touching emblem of the 
more (lur,ible inoaument which he had erected for himself by 
his works. 

It was the saying of Beutliam — *^ Every act of kindness is, 
inflict, an exercise of power.'' 

"KiXDXEss does not consist in gif^s, but in gentleness and 
generosity of spirit. Men may give their money, wliich 
comes from thtj purse, and withhold their kindness, which 
comes from the heart" (Sjniles), 

ltATiii:R look on the good of evil mcn,t]ian on the evil of 
goO'l men." 

JuuGr: BY THE DEsiG>;. Ilough treatment is sometimes tlio 
truest kindness. A Kussian stage driver thus saved the life 
of a i)ass(jng(ir. A woman was the only occu[)ant in the 
coach, exce[)0 her baby, which she wnipped in her fur cloak, 
leaving herself unprotected from the cold, which was then at 
zero. The driver saw tint she was benuniljid, and would 
soon be frozen to death, unless rous -d to violent exertion. 
He dr.igged her from the coach and left her by the road- 
side. Immediately the cry ar(;se, Oh, my baby." The 
driver cracked his whip — on Hew the stage over the snow, 
with the mother running after. Therac3 was kept up for n-arly 
two miles, when at last the man stopped, and took her in, and 
wrapped his own coat round her. The exertion had warmed 
her blood and saved her life. 

In little things. " The grass of the field is more generally 
useful, all the world through, than the cedar of Lebanon. 
It feeds more. It rests the eye better. Its thymey, daisy- 
eyed carpet, makes earth sweet and fair and homedike. 
Kindness is the turf on which the sheep of Christ feed 
quietly beneath the Shepherd's eye" (Faber), 

Eewarded. a story is told of a little sailor boy, who left 
the port of Boston, taking Avith him a pet kitten. His ship 
was wrecked off the Azores. He was about to jump into one 



KNOWLEDGE. 



133 



of the "boats, which was on the point of pushing off, when he 
thought of his kitten, and ran al ter it. Eeturning with it, he 
found the first boat had gone, but another was ready, and 
into it he jumped. The storm raged, and the darkness was 
intense, but the second boat survived. Of all that started 
from the wreck, only that one was preserved. Had the boy 
forsaken his kitten, he must have perished with the first 
boat's company, which started without him {HaiidbooJc of 
Illustrafiom), 

Smile on me. " What can I do for you ^ said a lady 
nurse in a hospital to a little boy, who, though young in 
years, was old in the experience of bodily pain and suffering. 
" Smile on me," was the gentle answer. The nurse, knowing 
how much he had to sulier, had generally smiled when she 
passed his bed, to try to cheer him, but on this occasion she 
was thinking of something else. The child missed the bright 
sunbeam. How little we know the value of a smile. 

K^^OWLEDGE 

— of itself, without being used rightly, and applied, is of 
no value. The knowledge of food cannot satisfy hunger, nor 
the knowledge of drugs cure disease. A man may know and 
teach the way of salvation, but without the personal living 
faith, that links the empty sinner to the blessed Saviour, there 
is no benefit from such knowledge, but rather condemnation. 

The human mind is not meant to be a dead reservoir, but 
a living fountain. It is not therefore to be crammed with 
facts and information, to lie still and stagnate; but to be 
filled with knowledge, that may germinate like good seed, and 
grow into fair blossoms and fragrant fruit, and scatter the 
seeds and perfume far and wide. 

The knowledge of Divine truth to the devout mind is ever 
gradually developing. When Columbus first landed in 
America, what did he know, or even imagine, of the vast 
continent on whose sliore his foot first stepped? What 
did he know of its lakes, and rivers, and mountains, and 



134 



LANGUAGES. 



plains, and forests 1 It will be our joy throughout eternity, 
to be always advancing in our knowledge of Divine things ; 
gaining new views and brighter visions of the glories of the 
wonderful works of God, yea, even gaining clearer visions of 
the unutterable glory of the great God Himself. When John 
Kobinson saw the httle band of pilgrims leave Delft on the 
Mayflower, fur the same Xew World, his farewell words were, 
The Lord has much truth yet to break forth from Ilis word." 

LANGUAGES. 

It is very diflicult to state the exact number of languages 
spoken in the world, as it depends upon where the line is 
drawn between a language and a dialect. Dr. Koelle's * Poly- 
glotta Africana ' compares one hundred African tongues, 
but many of these must be properly classed as dialects. So 
nuist a large proportion of the 700 and upwards in Mr. 
Keith Johnston's work on Africa. A recent and carefully 
drawn-iip list by ^h. A. II. Keane gives 499 languages in the 
whole world, of which 10 are monusyllabic, 161 inflexional, 
and the rest agglutinative. 

A calculation has been made as to the prevalence of 
European languages. English is spoken by 90,000,000 ; 
Kussian by 75,000,000 ; German by 50,000,000; French by 
40,000,000 ; Spanish by 38,000,000 ; Italian by 29,000,000 ; 
Portuguese by 14,000,000; Scandinavian by 9,000,000. 
Within the control of the government of the people speak- 
ing these languages, we find England having rule over 
225,000,000 who don't speak English, and of the others, we 
find 75,000,000 outside of their own country. 

The PROGRESS of language is perhaps the most clear mark of 
the advance of civilization. In its first stages it is pictorial, 
then symbolic, then abstract. 

iN'uMBER OF WORDS. It is computed that the Spanish have 
about 20,000 words in their language ; Latin, 25,000 ; French, 
30,000 ; Chinese, 40,000; Italian, 45,000 ; Greek, 50,000; 
English, 60,000; German, 80,000. In Hebrew there aie 



THE LAW. 



135 



about 1700 radical words. There are about 360 Cbaldaic 
words in the Bible. 

In English it is said, a poor man scarcely uses more than 
1000 words in his conversation, an ordinarily educated man 
about 3000, an accomplished orator nearly 10,000. 

Dr. Guthrie, when travelling abroad, and able to converse 
only imperfectly in the different languages of the several 
countries, wrote to a friend, that there would be one blessing 
he looked forward for in heaven ; to have only one language, 
which every inhabitant of the realms of bliss coald speak. 

LAW, THE. 

Is THERE NOT one vcry important point, not generally 
noticed, which stamps the laws given by God with a pre- 
eminence above all other laws'? Laws are generally made, it 
has been well said, when a nation has become well settled ; 
and they are founded upon contingencies which have arisen 
from the soil, the trade, the produce of the country, and the 
temper, customs, and requirements of the people, as these 
have been gradually developed. But God gave laws through 
Moses, before the people had even come to their land, while 
they were still wandering in a wilderness. He gave direc- 
tions, of which no human foresight could have seen the 
need, as when He gave provision for their kings, when as yet 
there was no prospect of their ha ving a king ! So with many 
of the laws of the 'New Covenant. Is not this a proof of 
Divine inspiration? 

There is another difference between the laws of God and 
of man : that, whereas we may reach the standard set before 
us by the laws of man, we may strive to fulfil the law of 
God, and it will still, the more we strive, rise ever higher and 
higher above us. The laws which man imposes are chiefly 
deterrent and restrictive. But the command, "Thou shalt 
love the Lord thy God with all thy heart," reaches to the 
deepest spring of our nature, and the widest extent of our life. 

Where did he get that law ] In a city in one of the 



136 



THE LAW. 



noitliern States of America lived a law3'er of eminence and 
talent. He was, however, notoriously profane. One day this 
gentleman met an elder of the Presbyterian Church, who "was 
also a hxwyer, and said to him, " I want, sir, to examine into 
the truth of the Chri.<tian reli;_,n*on. AVliat books would you 
advise me to read on t\i2 evidences of Chi istionity ] " The 
ehler, surprised at the inquiry, replied, " That, sir, is a question 
you ought to have settled long ago. You ought not to have 
])ut oil' a subject so important to the la-t period of life." ** It 
is not too hite," saitl the inquirer. I have upon me, my 
])hysician says, a mortal disease, under which I may live a 
year and a half, or two ye.us, but probably not longer. What 
bo k, sir, would you advise me to readi" *'The Lible," 
said the elder. I believe you don't nnderstand me," re- 
sumed the unbeliever. *' I wish to investigate the truth of 
the Ihble." I would advise you, sir,'' repeated the elder, 
**to read the Lible, and I will give you my reasons. Most 
infidels are very ignorant oi the Scriptures. Now, to reason 
on any subject with correctness, we must understand Avhat it 
is, about which we reason. In the next place, I consider the 
internal evidence of the truth of the Scriptures stronger than 
the external.'' And where sliall I begin?" inquired the 
nubeliever ; "at the New Testament ? " No, at the begin- 
ning — at Genesis." The inlidel bought a Bible, went home, 
and sat down to the seri'»u3 study of the Scriptures. lie 
a])plied all his strong and well-disciplined powers of mind to 
the Bible, to try rigidly, but impartially, its truth. As he 
went on in its perusal, lie received occasional calls from the 
elder. The infidel freely remarked on what he read, and 
stated his objections. He liked this passage, thought that 
touching and beautiful, but he could not credit a third. One 
evening the elder called, and found him walking the room 
with a dejected look, his mind a})parently absorbed in thought. 
He cor.tinued, not noticing that any one had come in, busily 
to trace and retrace his steps. The elder at length spoke : 
*^You seem, sir, to be in a brown study; of what are you 



THE LAW. 



137 



tliinkiiiG^ 1 " "I have been reading," replied the man, "the 
moral law." "Well, what do you think of itV "I will 
tell you what I used to think," answered the infidel. "I 
supposed Moses was the leader of a horde of banditti; that, 
having a strong mind, he acquired great influence over a 
superstitious people ; and that on Mount Sinai he played off 
some sort of fireworks, to the amazement of his ignorant 
followers, who imagined, in their mingled fear and superstition, 
that the exhibition was supernatural." " But what do you 
think now?" interposed the elder. "I have been looking," 
was the reply, "into the nature of that law. I have been 
trying to see whether I could add anything to it, or take 
anything from it, so as to make it better. I cannot, — it is 
perfect. The first commandment directs us to make the 
Creator the object of our supreme love and reverence. That 
is right. If He be our Creator, Preserver, and Supreme Bene- 
factor, we ought to treat Him, and none other, as such. The 
second forbids idolatry. That certainly is right. The third 
forbids profanity. The fourth fixes a time for rehgious worship ; 
and if there be a God, He ought surely to be worshipped. It 
is suitable that there should be an outward homage significant 
of our inward regard. If God be worshipped, it is proper 
that some time should be set apart for that purpose, when 
all may worship Him harmoniously and without interruption. 
One day in seven is certainly not too much, and I do not 
know that it is too little. The fifth defines the peculiar 
duties arising from family relations. Injuries to our neigh- 
bours are then classified by the moral law. They are divided 
into offences against life, chastity, property, and character. 
And I notice that the greatest offence in each class is expressly 
forbidden. Thus the greatest injury to life is murder; to 
chastity, adultery; to property, theft; to character, perjury. 
Now the greatest offence must include the less of the same 
kind. Murder mi^st include every injury to life; adultery, 
every injury to purity ; and so ot the rest. And the moral 
code is closed and perfected, by a command forbidding every 



138 



LKAKNING. 



improper desire in regard to our neighbours. I have been 
tliinking, where did IMoses get this law ] I have read history. 
The Egyptians and the adjacent nations were idolaters ; so 
w^ere the Greeks and Eomans ; and the wisest and best Greeks 
and Eomans never gave a code of morals like this ! Where 
did !Moses get this law, which surpasses the wisdom and 
philosophy of the most enlightened ages? He lived at a 
period comparatively barbarous ; yet he has given a law in 
which the learning and sagacity of all subsequent times can 
detect no flaw. Where did he get it 1 He could not have 
soared so high above his age as to have devised it himself. 
I am satisfied wliere he obtained it. It came down from 
heaven. I am convinced of the truth of the Lible.*' And the 
infidel — now infidel no longer — remained to his death a firm 
believer in the truth of Christianity [American Neivsjmjyer). 

LEAENING. 

Though learning has been possessed by the wicked, the 
learning of ungodly men has not been the cause of their 
wickedness ; but merely the occasion of manifesting it. Nay, 
their learning has been of use to others. The Scribes 
among the Jews preserved the Scriptures, and the learning 
of worldly men, wdiether physicians, lawyers, or historians, 
or even divines, has often been beneficial to their countr}^, 
and made subservient to religion. God thus continues to 
spoil the Egyptians, and make their jewels and their treasure 
presents and gifts to His Church. If pious persons are 
prejudiced against learning, from seeing the way in which 
learned men have perverted the Gospel, they should also con- 
sider that want of literature is no security for a pure Gospel. 
Men of boldness, talent, and fluency, who may be very illiter- 
ate, wall press forward, pretend to extraordinary light, and 
draw multitudes after them, when it is nothing more than 
speaking great swelling words of vanity,' ' and thus alluring 
through the lusts of the flesh, those that were clean escaped 
from them w^ho live in error " (Bev, JS. Bickerstetli), 



LETTERS. 



139 



LETTEES. 

The * Frankfurter Yolkszeitung ' published some interesting 
statistics a short time ago, about the intercommunication of 
different parts of the world by letters and telegrams. In 1865, 
the number of letters sent through the post, all over the world, 
was estimated at 2,300,000,000 ; and available data for 1877 
shows that the postal communication had reached to 
4,620,000,000 ! which gives an average of 11 millions a day, or 
7620 every minute, and 127 every second ! Europe contributed 
3036 million letters ; America about 760 millions ; Asia, 150 
millions ; Africa, 25 millions ; and Australia about 50 millions. 

Assuming that the population of the world is about 1300 
to 1400 millions, this would give an average of about 3 letters 
for every one of the human family. 

The length of telegraph lines by sea and by land must 
now be about 500,000 miles. We have 38,000 telegraph 
stations, and the number of messages may be set down as 
between 110 and 111 millions ; averaging about 305,000 each 
day, or 12,778 every hour, and nearly 212 every minute, — 
and all these numbers are yearly increasing. 

According to the official report of the Postmaster-General 
for 1882, it appears that the number of letters delivered in 
the United Kingdom in the year reached the large sum of 
1,280,636,200 ; of postcards, 144,016,200; of book packets 
and circulars, 288,216,400; and newspapers, 140,682,600; and 
of registered letters, 11,264,926. The proportion, as compared 
with that of other countries, shows how far ahead England is 
in the extent of her correspondence ; the average number per 
head for the United Kingdom being 36 letters per annum ; 
while the average number for the United States is 21; for 
France, 15; for Germany, 13; for Italy only 6 ; and for Spain, 
5. (The average number of letters in Great Britain before 
the Penny Post began was 4 for each person; in 1880 it was 
33; in 1883, 36.) There are now more than 15,000 Post-offices 
in the United Kingdom; the total number of receptacles for 
letters being about 30,000; and the strength of the whole 



110 



LIFE. 



postal stalJ, of whom 2561 are females, about 44,000, TLe 
number of telegrams seut iu 1882 was 32,092,026. 

LIFE. 

Few statistics are more full of interest than those which 
concern tlie duration of human life, the rate of mortality of 
particular classes, &c. Take a few statements gathered from 
dillerent sources. 

1. It is very remarkable, that of all races none have the 
same power of reproduction, even when under most disad- 
vantageous circumstances ; and none have the same power of 
resisting diseasr*, as the Jews. They are le^^s liable too to 
suicides and other abnormal causes of death. 

2. Taking all kinds of climates, it is said, one-seventh of 
all the deaths aie caused by j)ulmonai-y complaints, chiefly 
consumption ; some say one-ninth. 

3. In England and Wales, taking the whole of the diseases 
tibulated iu the Registrar-General's returns, it is said that 
from one-iifth to one-sixth on the average of the entire 
mortality is owing to preventable causes. 

4. The total number of deaths annually in the United 
Kingdom is about 700,000. 

5. It was stated by the Sanitary Institution of Great 
Britain, in their Eeport for 1880, that in 13,000,000 of our 
people, the urban death-rate is 5 in every 1000 higher than 
the rural rate. 

6. It was stated also, by a comparison of the well-to-do and 
the poor, that wliilst in every 100,000, 8000 children of the 
former die annually, 32,000 die of the poorer class. 

7. It was stated in 'Our Fireside' for April, 1883, ''The 
average length of life is about 28 years. One quarter die 
previous to the age of 7 ; over one-half before they reach 17 ; 
only 1 of every 10,000 persons reach 100 years ; only 6 out 
of every 100 reach the age of 65 ; and not more than 1 in 500 
live to 80 years of age.'' Of the whole population of the 
globe, it is estimated that 90,000 die every day; about 



LIFEBOATS. 



141 



3700 every hour; aljoiit 60 every minute; about 1 every 
second. Eut these losses are more than counterbalanced by 
the number of births. 

8. The tables of mortahty show that the married live 
longer than the single. 

9. The average duration of life in all civilized countries is 
greater now than it was at any former period registered. 
Macaulay says, that the year 1685 was not an unhealthy one 
yet the deaths in England were as 1 to 10; in 1850 as 
1 to 40. 

10. The average life of all persons born in this country, 
says Mr. Smiles, is about 45 years. Other accounts say, 
the average for the upper and middle classes is 55 in every 
1000, and for the poorer class 35. 

11. The average life of the members of Royal families is 
shorter by some years than that of the ordinary gentry. 

12. In 1880, the total amount insured in life policies 
in the countiy was about £425,000,000 ; the annual charge 
to policy holders for premiums was about £13,603,721. 

LIFEBOATS. 

Is THERE a nobler example of philanthropic effort and 
rightly applied power of invention, than the lifeboat How 
many lives have been saved by the lifeboats around our 
Eritish coasts ! " The wreck chart," marking the chief places 
where vessels have been wrecked, tells a touching tale of 
brave lives lost and homes made sad ! 

Who invented our first lifeboat 1 Those who care to see 
the question investigated, will find the information they wish 
for in Mr. Richard Lewis's ' The Lifeboat and its Work.'* 
The honour is claimed by three different persons. Mr. 
Lionel Lukin, a coach-builder in Long Acre, who about 1789 
designed and fitted up "an unimmergible boat"; the inscrip- 
tion on his tombstone in Hythe Church claims the honour 
for him. Mr. Wouldhave of South Shields, who also 
invented a boat after a premium had been offered for the best 



142 



LIFEBOATS. 



design ; a model of his boat is suspended in the parish 
church of St. Hilda. And Mr. Henry Greathead, whose boat 
was built by public subscription ; it was launched in 1790. 

After having saved many lives, Mr. Greathead applied to 
Parliament for a Xational rev/ard, and £1200 was publicly 
voted to him ; the Trinity House added 100 guineas ; Lloyds 
the same ; the Society of Arts its gold medal and 50 guineas, 
and the Emperor of Ihissia a gold ring. 

In 1823 two philanthropic gentlemen took up the cause 
very warmly, Sir William Hillary, Bart., and Mr. Thomas 
Wilson, M.P., and through their efforts, the Eoyal National 
Lifeboat Institution was organized in 1824, a truly noble 
association, which has saved many a valuable life from being 
lost in the deep Avaters. It met at first with enthusiastic 
support, and the receii)ts the first year were X9826. 

It has now a fleet of 270 lifeboats, ready at any moment for 
active service. For nearly 30 years it has published the list 
of shipwrecks and casualties on the British coast. These 
have increased in proportion to the increase of our shipping. 
In part of 1852 the wrecks and casualties were 111 ; 18G2, 
U88 ; 1872, 1958 ; 1882, 3575 ; making a total in 27 years 
of 55,416, involving the loss of 19,534 lives. During this 
period the lifeboats have saved 12,GG7 lives. Since tlie com- 
mencement of the Institution it has contributed to the saving 
of nearly 30,000 lives, for which gold and silver medals and 
pecuniary rewards have been given to the value of .£50,000. 

The wreck chart shows how especially dangerous some 
parts of the British coast are, particularly the east coast 
of England and Scotland, and some parts of the west coast. 

Every lifeboat and boathouse costs on an average £800 
to £1000, of which £250 is reckoned for the boathouse. 

An interesting illustration of how much may be done 
by the " power of littles," has been given of late. A sugges- 
tion was made in the 'Boy's Own Paper,' published by the 
Eeligious Tract Society, that the boys of England reading 
that paper, should subscribe to provide an additional lifeboat. 



LIFEBOATS. 



143 



A generous response has been made, .£1600 or more raised 
for tlie purpose, and a grand new lifeboat was established 
on the coast of Cornwall, and is now ready for service there 
whenever it may be called out. 

In 1873 the Lifeboat Institution had 242 boats under its 
management ; and it is worthy of note, that every one 
of these had been a gift. Some had been given by persons 
living near the coasts, who saw the need existing for them ; 
some as a thank-offering for preservation from shipwreck ; and 
some by public bodies. There are now about 270 boats, 
manned by 25,000 brave men. 

In recording the many acts of bravery rendered by this valu- 
able agency, Mr. Lewis says, " The services performed by the 
Eamsgate Lifeboat, in connection with the harbour steamers 
" Vulcan " and " Aid," have been beyond comparison more 
numerous and daring than those of any other lifeboats in the 
world." 

Mr. Smiles, in his admirable book on * Duty,' refers to the 
services of the Fa/z Kook, one of the boats of the Institution, 
jiresented by Mr. E. W. Cooke, E.N. It was stationed at 
Deal in 1865. It has already saved over 161 lives, and 
assisted to rescue 7 ships from destruction. While the aged 
artist was on his deathbed, the men of his lifeboat were doing 
their bravest work. 

At one o'clock on Sunday, Dec. 28, 1879, a gun from 
the South Sands Lightship, on the Goodwins, gave warning 
that a vessel was engulfed among the breakers. It was 
then blowing a most furious gale, enough, as some said, 
''to blow your teeth down your throat." The bell rang to 
man the lifeboat, and the boatmen gallantly answered to the 
summons. Fourteen men were the crew. With a mighty 
rush, they launched the boat down their steep beach into the 
boiling surf. They found three vessels on the Goodwin 
Sands. The crew of one took to their boats, and got into 
Margate, leaving their ship to be driven to pieces. A second 
vessel disappeared; and w^as lost with all hands. The third 



LIGHTHOUSES. 



sliip was left, the Lida, a German vessel. It stuck fast in the 
worst pact of the Sands — the South Spit, where the waves in 
the mildest day are continually tuinbliug. No nvitter ! the 
ship must be reached. On ai)proaching, it was fouud tliat 
the main an I inizen masts had been cut away, and that the 
men were cli nixing to the weather b dwarks, wliile slieets of 
solid water made a clean breach over thcin. The Van Kook 
fetched a little to the windward of tlie ship; and dropping 
anchor, veered down upon lier. If the cable parted, and the 
lifeboat struck tlic ship with lull force, not a man could have 
been saved. lUit tlie lifeboat ciew said, " We're bound to 
save them," and with all the coolness of the race, doing all 
that men can (hj," tliey concentrated their energies upon getting 
their boat close enough to the wreck to throw their line. 
Though beaten by the tremendous seas that were breaking 
into and over, si) that the boat was full up to tlie thwart?, the 
coxswain sang out, as he saw another wave ap[)roaching, 
** Look out, men," and they grasped the thwarts and held on, 
breathless, for dear life. One sea huiled the boat against the 
fihip and stove in her fore air-box, so that the safety of all 
made it necessary to steer oif. But again they returned. The 
throw-line was at last got on boanl the barque, and tho 
crew were got by ones and twos into the lifeboat. The last 
man was saveil, and the gallant coxswain called out, Up 
foresails, and cui the cable.'* So away went the brave boat 
for home, with its goodly freight of thirty-four souls. One of 
the rescued men had t^vice before been saved by the Van 
Kook. Mr. Cooke lived long enough to hear the " Well 
done ! Seven days after, he died. 

LIGHTHOUSES. 

There were in 1870, in England, 237 lighthouses, lights 
on piers, harbour lights, &c., and 49 lightships ; in Scotland, 
134 lighthouses, and 1 lightship; in Ireland, 85 lighthouses, 
&c., and 9 liglitships; total, for the United Kingdom, 456 
Lighthouses, and 58 lightships — altogether 514. 



LIQUOR TRAFFIC. 



145 



Who can calculate the blessings these have been, how many 
noble vessels they have saved, how many brave hearts they 
have cheered ! They have been erected often with the 
greatest difficulty, as in the famous Eddystone and Skerryvore 
Lighthouses, and afterwards maintained at no little cost of 
money and personal hardihood; yet who would grudge either, 
when the object has been so noble and so grand ! 

The first instruction given to lighthouse-keepers runs 
thus : — • 

" You are to light the lamps every evening at sunset, and 
keep them constantly burning, bright and clear, till sun-rising, " 

1^0 bed, or sofa, or any article for reclining, is to be allowed 
in the apartment under the lantern, known as the watch-room. 

LTQUOE TEAFFIC. 

Public- HOUSES. According to Mr. Hoyle, there are at 
present 185,000 houses in the United Kingdom where intoxi- 
cating liquors are sold; or one drink shop for every 36 
houses, or every 170 persons, throughout the kingdom. If 
these houses could be placed side by side, allowing a frontage 
of 14 yards each, they would form a street of houses 750 
miles long, i. e., a street which would reach from Land's 
End in Cornwall to John O'Groat's on the extreme Korth of 
Scotland, and 140 miles beyond that ! Or, to take another 
estimate. If we could concentrate all the public-houses and 
beer-shops together in one county, say the county of Staf- 
ford, which is the most densely peopled of all the Mi'iland 
counties, it would swallow up all the houses in Staffordshire, 
with its population of 860,000 people ; and some 65,000 more 
houses would be required before the drink-sellers were accom- 
modated ! 

Cost. From the statistics pul)lished annually, it is shown, 
that during the 12 years from 1870 to 1881 inclusive, the 
amount of money spent on intoxicating drink in the United 
Kingdom has been £1,609,241,534, being an average of 
£134,103,461 per annum. In 1870 the amount spent was 

L 



146 



LIQUOR TRAFFIC. 



£118,836,284, and the expenditure rose rapidly till 1876, 
when it was <£ 147, 288,669, the highest sum ever reached. 
After 1876 it has happily declined, and last year it had fallen 
to £127,074,460. 

Taking the population of the United Kingdom at 
33,000,000 during the period referred to, this gives a yearly 
expenditure of £4 Is. 3lcL per head for the entire popula- 
lation, or a total for the 12 years of £48 15^. 36?. The 
National Debt for the United Kingdom in 18S1 was 
£768,703,602, and the value of the railways of the United 
Kingdom, reckoning them according to the money invested, 
was £728,621,657, so that during the 12 years ending 1881, 
the people have spent as much money in intoxicating liquors 
as would have paid off our entire National Debt, and bought 
up all the railways, and left £112,000,000 to spare ! Again, 
the rent paid for houses in the United Kingdom is about 
£70,000,000 ; the money spent yearly upon woollen goods 
is about £46,000,000, and upon cotton goods, £14,000,000, 
giving a total of £130,000,000, so that we have spent upon 
intoxicating drink each year during the last 12 years, as much 
as the total amount of the house rental of the United King- 
dom, besides the money spcmtupon woollen and cotton goods, 
leaving upwards of £4,000,000 besides. 

The total rent of the agricultural land of Groat Britain is 
estimated at about £48,000,000 yearly, and of Ireland at 
about £12,000,000; so that every year during the last 12 
years we have drunk nearly three times the farm rental of 
Great Britain, or over eleven times the farm rental of Ireland. 

Liverpool. It is calculated, said the * Lancet,' a short 
time ago, from the official returns of the police and relief 
authorities in Liverpool, that every public-house makes ten 
paupers annually ; that every public-house employs one police- 
man ; that every public-house sends eight persons to the police 
courts annually; that every public-house costs the public 
£160 a year; and tha^> the expenditure on drink would 
supply the people with a fresh Sefton Park every year." 



LITEEATURE. 



147 



In Chicago, with a sort of grim humour, it was proposed 
some time ago to increase the police force by 500 men, and 
make the drinking saloons support them ! The plan was to 
raise the license of each saloon a 100 dollars a year. It was 
argued that nine-tenths of the criminal expenses come as the 
result of the liquor-selling and saloon influence, and therefore 
it is only fair that the saloons should be made to pay for the 
protection they afford ! 

Kew York, it is said, far exceeds England in the amount 
spent in drink. Mr. Eobert Graham at Chicago, says that 
in New York there are 100,000 liquor shops, which are said 
to have taken last year £8,000,000, from a population of 
1,250,000, or more than £6 per head. 

LITEEATUEE. 

Guttenburg's dream. John Guttenburg, the inventor of 
printing, had a singular dream in the cloister of Argobada 
before he made known his great secret. He thought the 
angel of light appeared to him, and spoke thus : " John 
Guttenburg, thou hast made thy name immortal, but think 
at what a price ; think well what thou art doing. The un- 
godly are many more than the godly. Thy work will but 
multiply their blasphemies and lies ; thou hast uncovered the 
bottomless pit ; a swarm of seducing spirits shall henceforth 
come out like the brood of Abaddon, and turn earth into hell. 
Oh, think of the millions of souls corrupted by these achieve- 
ments, the poison of fiends distilled into the souls of boys 
and girls, making them old in the experience of sin ! See 
that mother, weeping over her depraved son, and that grey- 
haired father hiding his face for his daughter's shame. 
Destroy thy press ; for it shall be the pander of blasphemy 
and lust. Destroy it, and forget it. Forbear, by multiplying 
the resources of the wicked, to make themselves, through the 
ages, partakers of their crimes." 

Guttenburg, it is said, was so moved by the dream, that 
he was about to destroy his invention. But he reflected that 

L 2 



148 



LITERATURE. 



the gifts of God, though sometimes perilous, are never evil, 
and that he might be helping the intellect and wisdom which 
God had given to man, to gain fresh power for good. He 
went on, therefore, with his work, and the first book that 
"Went forth from his press was a portion of the Holy Scriptures. 

The multiplication op books. In a singular book, now 
very rare, * The Book Hunter,' c^'c., by John Hill Burton 
(18G3), there is an interesting note : — ■ 

1 am not aware that in the Bhie Books, or any other 
source of ])ublic information, there is any autlienticated 
statement of tlie quantity of literature wliich the privileged 
libraries receive tlirough tlie copyright act. The information 
Avould aifurd a measure of tlie fertility of the British press. 
It is ratlutr curi(nis tliat for a morsel of this kind of ordinary 
niO(U rn statistics, one must liave recourse to so scholarly a 
work as the quarto volume of the * Praifationes et Epistolas : 
Editionibus Brincipihus Auctorum Yeterum pra^positre, curante 
Eeriah Bottield, A.M.' The editor of that noble quarto 
obtained a return from ^Ir, AViiiter Jones of the number of 
deposits in the British Museum from 1814 to 18 GO. Count- 
ing the * })ieces,' as they are calletl, that is, every volume, 
pamphlet, page of music, and other publication, the total 
number received in 1814 was 378. It increased by steady 
graduation until 1851, when it reached 9871. It then got 
an impulse, from a determination more strictly to enforce the 
Act, and next year the number rose to 13,934, and in 1859 
it reached 28,807. In this great mass, the number of books 
coming forth complete in one volume or more is roundly 
estimated at 5000 ; but a quantity of the separate numbers 
and parts which go to make up the total, are elementary portions 
of books, giving forth a certain number of completed volumes 
annually. From the same authority, it appears that the total 
number of publications which issued from the French press 
in 1858 was estimated at 13,000 ; but this included ^sermons, 
pamphlets, pieces of music, and engravings.' In the same 
year the issues from the German press, Austria not included, 



LITEEATURE. 



149 



are estimated at 10,000, all apparently actual volumes, or 
considerable pamphlets. Austria in 1855 published 4673 
volumes. What a contrast to all this it must be to live in 
sleepy ISTorway, where the annual literary prowess produces 
146 volumes ! In Holland the annual publications approach 
2000. During the year 1854, 861 works in the Eussian 
language, and 451 in foreign languages, were printed in 
Russia, besides 2940 scientific and literary treatises in the 
difi^erent periodicals. The number of works published any- 
where is, however, no indication of the number of books put 
in circulation, since some will have to be multiplied by tens, 
others by hundreds, and others by thousands. We know 
that there is an immense currency of literature in the American 
States, yet of the quantity of literature issued there, the 
'Publisher's Circular' for February, 1859, gives the follow- 
ing meagre estimate : — ' There were 912 w^orks published in 
America during 1858. Of these 177 were reprints from 
England, 35 were new editions, and 10 were translated from 
the French or German. The new American works thus 
number only 690, and among them are included sermons, 
pamphlets, and letters, whereas the reprints are in most cases 
honci fide books.' " 

The British press in 1882. From the ^ Publisher's Circular,' 
it appears that in 1882, 5124 books were published in Great 
Britain, being a slight decrease from the preceding year, which 
is to be accounted for by the extraordinary activity which 
now prevails in every department of journalism and periodical 
literature. This forms, indeed, one of the prominent " signs 
of the times." The analysis of the books published is very 
interesting: — Theology, 789; Educational, Classical, and 
Philological, 525 ; Juvenile Works and Tales, 987 ; ISTovels, 
Tales, and other fiction, 420 ; Law, Jurisprudence, 75 ; Poli- 
tical and Social Economy, Trade and Commerce, 189; Art, 
Science, and illustrated works, 344; Voyages and Travels, 
244 ; History, Biography, 452 ; Poetry and the Drama, 181 ; 
Year Books and serials in volumes, 269 ; Medicine, Surgery, 



150 



LITTLE THINGS. 



177; Eellcs Lcttres, Essays, 106; Miscellaneous, including 
Pamphlets, not Sermons, 356 : total, 512-4. 

LITTLE THINGS. 

The HARVEST MIRACLE. Mr. Macmillan notes, in one of 
his admirable chapters, * The Harvest INIiracle ' : It is a most 
significant fact, that both the production of our food and of 
our clothing should depend upon very small and insignificant- 
looking ngencies. The staple manufacture of one of the 
greatest countries in the world, and the principal produce of 
another, depend upon the apparently accidental irregularity 
upon the surface of a hair ! — the twisting seen in the ultimate 
cotton fibre under the microscope, produced by its peculiar 
method of growth, by means of which it can unite with its 
fellows, and form with them a cord strong enough to be 
woven. So, too, with the food of the whole world. It is 
produced by the fertilizing action of the slender, hair-like 
filaments called stamens and pistils, which hang out of the 
green ear at a certain season, when the corn is in flower. 
The blossom of the cereals, especially wheat, rye, and barley, 
is small and inconspicuous. It has no calyx or corolla. Its 
elements, such as glumes and palece, must be regarded as 
bracts, rather than parts of a true perionth. Insects hardly 
ever visit it. The cereals are therefore fertilized exclusively 
by the agency of the wind ; and for this purpose, their long 
delicate tilaments and lightly balanced anthers hanging out of 
the ear, and their very fine and powdery pollen, produced in 
great abundance, are admirably adapted. Favourable weather, 
bright and sunny, with a light breeze, which will convey the 
pollen in sufficient quantity to its proper destination, is there- 
fore of the utmost importance, in order to secure a heavy 
crop. If the wind be too strong, the pollen is carried to too 
great a distance, and only a small portion of it reaches the 
blossom of the corn, and the consequence is, that the ear, 
though formed, is half empty of nutritious material, and 
there is a great deficiency in the produce. Were the stamens 



LITTLE THINGS. 



151 



and pistils to fail in tlieir work, were they to shrivel up or be 
blighted by unfavourable weather — and it would seem as if 
a fiercer ray of sunshine, or ruder breath of wind, or a heavier 
fall of rain than ordinary, might do this ; were the wind to 
prove continually boisterous at the critical time, and disperse 
the pollen, so that it should be wasted ; then the whole pro- 
duce of the fields would fail, and all the swift ships and 
extensive warehouses, and complicated arrangements of trade, 
and institutions of security, which man's skill and power has 
thrown up as breakwaters against the tide of fortune, would 
be of no avail to stem the universal disaster. The life of man 
thus literally hangs on a thread — upon a breath of wind i 
Science cannot make us independent. Science cannot be 
substituted for religion, for conscious dependence upon the 
Great Being who twists the little cotton fibre every summer, 
that the looms of the nation may be kept busy, and that the 
shame of our nakedness may not appear, and gives every year 
favourable weather, by which the ear of corn may hang out 
its tiny staminal thread, and complete its all-essential func- 
tions, that so the sower and the reaper may rejoice together 
with the joy of harvest." 

Earth-worms. Mr. Darwin, in his singularly interesting 
work on ' Earth-worms,* says : " When we behold a wide turf- 
covered expanse, we should remember that its smoothness, on 
which so much of its beauty depends, is mainly due to all 
the irregularities having been slowly levelled by worms. It 
is a marvellous reflection, that the whole of the superficial 
mould over any such expanse has passed, and will again pass, 
through the bodies of worms. The plough is one of the most 
ancient and most valuable of man's inventions. But long 
before this existed, the land was, in fact, regularly ploughed, 
and still continues to be ploughed, by earth-worms. It may 
be doubted, whether there are any other animals which have 
played so important a part in the history of the world as 
have these lowly-organized creatures. Some other animals, 
however, still more lowly organized, viz. corals, have done 



152 



LITTLE THINGS. 



far more conspicuous works, in having constructed innumer- 
able reefs and islands in the great oceans ; but tliese are 
almost confined to tropical zones." In another part of the 
work ]\Ir. Darwin refers to the immense amount of rich soil 
thrown up by these small creatures. It is calculated about 
132,000,000 tons every year in i^ngland alone. 

Bees. In an article on Bee culture in the ' Standard/ 
Feb. 15, 1883, it is said, that iu Xorth America alone there 
are about 300,000 colonies of bees, which yield, it is com- 
puted, over 100,000,000 pounds of honey, worth at least 
£300,000. But this estimate only refers to the honey taken 
to the market. It is calculated, not more than one-twelfth 
of the bee-keepers make returns of their crops. 

JS^iAGARA. When the suspension bridge was built at 
Niagara, the first thing was to send a boy's kite over the 
chasm. It carried a silken cord across the roaring abyss 
beneath, and that cord drew after it wires, and the wires 
cables, and the cables a bridge, which now bears the thunder 
of trafhc between two empires. 

Lucifer matches. The gradual extinction of some of the 
vast forests is causing some concern in the Unit'^d States. 
An immense quantity of timber is required for little things. 
For lucifer matches 300,000 cubic feet of the best pine is 
required every year. Lasts and boot trees require 500,000 
cubic cords of birch, beech, and maple; and these drains 
upon the forests are yearly increasing. 

The telegraph poles already erected represent 800,000 
trees, whilst their annual repair requires about 300,000 more. 
The "ties" of the railroads consume annually about thirty 
years' growth of 30,000 acres ; and the fences for the railroads 
cost 45,000,000 dollars, with a yearly cost of 15,000,000 
dollars for repairs. 

The GOLD SWEEPINGS at the royal mint for 1880 were 
valued at £2995 95. M. 

Fractions of a penny. By an Act passed in 1882, power 
was given to the Bank of England to transfer to the Treasury 



LONDON. 



153 



the large sum of £143,272 II5. 2d., arising from fractions of 
a penny on account of the dividends on the National Debt. 
It has never been customary to jDay fractions of a penny on 
Government Stocks, and such fractions have gone on accumu- 
lating till now, the result being this handsome windfall for 
the exchequer. 

Eaindrops. In a list of fables, there is one which contains 
a good lesson upon little things : — What an insignificant 
little thing you are," said a Puddle by the wayside to a Eain- 
drop, as it splashed into it one morning. " Perhaps so," said 
the Eaindrop ; " but I reflect as much of the sky as I have 
room for, and the bosom of the proudest lake can say no more !" 

" A SWARM OF FLIES stopped a train some time ago in ]N"orth 
America ! — a long train of heavy carriages, going at the rate 
of twenty miles an hour. I will tell you how it happened. 
In some of the railway carriages in America, they put the 
grease in a box over the wheel. The friction causes the 
grease to melt, and enables the wheel to go round nicely. If 
the grease does not come down, the wheel will get hot, and 
will set the carriage on fire. One day the engineer saw that 
one of the wheels was getting hot — red hot. He stopped the 
train to examine the cause, and found a number of flies had 
got into the grease-box, and prevented it running down the 
wheel. So the little flies stopped the huge train " [Rev, James 
Vaughan), 

LONDOE"— 

— THE GREATEST CITY the world has ever seen ! the most 
densely-inhabited. The population of ancient Mneveh is sup- 
posed to have been 800,000 to 900,000, and of ancient Eome 
1,020,000. The population of modern Paris is about 
2,000,000 ; Vienna about 900,000 ; Berlin, 1,000,000 ; New 
York, 1,100,000; Bombay, 700,000; Eome, 300,000. The 
population of London in 1881, within the Eegistrar-General's 
Tables of Mortality, 3,814,571, and within the Metropolitan 
and City poliee districts, 4,764,312. 



lot 



LONDON. 



Its extent within the 15 miles radius of Charing Cross 
is ne:u'ly 700 square railes. 

It^ connection with all parts of the world is carried on 
by the yearly delivery in its postal districts of about 
250,000,000 of letters. 

It has a birth every 4 minutes, or 140,650 on the average 
every year ; a death every 6 minutes, or an average of 
88,237 in the year; 7 accidents every day, in its 7000 miles 
of streets. It has on an averap^e 23 miles of new streets 
opened, and 8800 new houses Iniilt in it every year. It has 
1000 ships and 9000 sailors in its port every day. It has 
on an average upwards of 73,000 persons annually taken 
into custody by the poHce ; 27,000 persons living in its 
common lodging-houses; 20,000 persons annually arrested as 
drunk and disorderly ; " and more than one-third of all the 
crime in the country is committed within its radius. There 
are in it generally about 100,000 persons living in open 
profligacy ; 20,000 professed beggars ; 3000 receivers of 
stolen goods ; 20,000 children living in destitution and sin ; 
12,000 children living under regular training for vice; 
30,000 thieves. 

To give a further estimate, it is shown by carefully- 
prepared papers, that there are in London about 11,000 
beershops and gin-palaces, the frontage of which, allowing 10 
yards for each, if placed side by side, would stretch from 
Charing Cross to Chichester, a distance of 62 miles. It has 
as many paupers as would more than occupy every house in 
Brighton. It has 60 miles of shops open every Lord's Day. 
It has, alas ! upwards of 1,000,000 habitual neglecters of 
public worship. 

There are in London more than half a million houses ; 
which, reckoning an average of five yards each, would form 
an unbroken line of building over 1 600 miles long. 1 600 miles 
would be sufiQcient to set a row of houses along the entire 
coast of Great Britain, from John 0' Groat's house to the 
Land's End, and from the Land's End to the Xorth Eoreland, 



LOST. 



155 



and from the ISTortli Foreland back to Jolin O'Groat^s house. 
Or, to put it in another form, it would be enough to make 
one long street, stretching right across Scotland, England, 
France, Switzerland, from Dunnet Head in Caithness, right 
on to the Mediterranean. 

There are more Eoman Catholics in London than in Eome 
itself ; more Jews than in the whole of Palestine ; more Irish 
than in Belfast ; more Scotchmen than in Aberdeen ; more 
Welshmen than in Cardiff. 

The wealth of London may be judged of from the gross 
value of houses and property lately registered at £33,176,103, 
the rateable value being £27,333,751. 

LOST. 

Illustrations. At sea, according to the official returns, 
there were in 1880-1, 237 lives lost from shipwrecks and 
casualties along the coast of the United Kingdom, of which 
no record has been traced to certify the cause. Who can 
describe the fear and suffering which must have preceded 
the loss of so many lives, and the want of care and skill and 
proper precaution, of which in many a case this was the sad 
result ? 

Land. The waste lands of Great Britain, so far back 
as 1794, w^ere estimated at 22,351,000 acres; which, if 
cultivated, reckoning only 95. an acre, would bring in an 
annual rent of .£10,957,000, besides employing so much 
labour ; and on the supposition that the yearly produce would 
average £1 7^. an acre, it would be worth £30,073,850 to the 
community. Since then a large part of the waste lands 
of the kingdom has been reclaimed ; so far the application of 
the parable to the moral waste of our population calls for 
thankfulness ; but how much is there still lying neglected and 
waste ! 

Property. In 1879 the value of property lost, very 
frequently from want of care, and not recovered by the police, 
was £79,921. During the last 10 years the value of lost 



156 



LOST. 



property has varied from X77,000 to £159,000, and the 
amount recovered has never been more than £22,000, and less 
than £19,000. 

Post-office. In the Post-Ofiico in 1882, no fewer than 
72,000 stamps were found loose in tlie boxes ; 27,22-4 articles 
escaped from tlieir coverincjs ; 21,G21 letters were posted 
witliout any address, in which were 1141 containing coins 
and Bank-notes to tlie value of £433, and cheques and 
bills worth £425. 

In London, according to tlie police returns for 1882, in the 
Metropolitan district, there were 177 persons lost, of whom 
23 were children missed from their homes, and their homes 
Lave not yet been found ! 

Astray 1 lost ! found ! An honest Eoman Catholic, who 
had never read the l>il)le, received one as a gift, and at once 
began to read it. His first exchimati(m, after reading a small 
part, was, ''Wife, d^ar, if this book be true, Ave liave gone 
astray^ As he read on, lie soon exclaimed, ^'AVife, dear, if 
this book be true, we are lost.^' He continued to read, God's 
gracious Spirit was with liim, and witli joy he said, *' Wife, 
dear, if this book be true, we inaij he savaV^ 

Lost ! lost ! lost ! In the north of England there are 
many coalfields, wdiicli were formerly worked, and have been 
abandoned ; the shafts of these unused mines are partly 
filled with water, and of great depth. One evening, a man 
was returning home from his work, and thought he might 
reach his cottage more quickly by crossing a barren moor, in 
which some of these open pits lay. But he had miscalculated 
the time, and darkness closed in upon him before he had 
crossed the moor. As he walked on he was suddenly seized 
by a fearful terror; his limbs trembled, his heart beat 
violently, and fear seemed to render him incapable of taking 
another step ! all he could do was to stand still and shriek 
out, Lost ! lost ! lost I " Mercifully, a w^atchman who was 
employed to warn travellers of the dangers of the way, heard 
the piercing cry. He lighted his lantern, and shouted back, 



LOVE. 



157 



Stand still for your life." Soon lie came up to the man, 
and holding the lantern forward, revealed a deep dark pit, 
half filled with black water, into which one step more would 
have plunged the traveller. 

LOYE 

— and FAITH. ''It is true, love is the grace that shall 
triumph in heaven ; but it is faith, not love, which is the 
conquering grace on earth. " This is the victory that over- 
cometh the world, even our faith." Love, it is true, is the 
grace that at last possesses the inheritance; but it is faith 
that brings the Christian right into it, without which it 
would never have been here. It is love that shall draw God 
and glorified sinners together in heaven ; but it was faith that 
first united them in Christ while tbey were on earth. First, 
faith worketh love, and then it worketh by love. As first, 
the workman setteth an edge to his tools, and then he carves 
and cuts with them ; so faith sharpens the soul's love to God, 
and then acts by it ; or, as a statuary, to make some difficult 
piece, before he goes about it, finding his hands numbed with 
cold, that he cannot handle his tools so nimbly as he should, 
goes first to the fire, and with the help of its heat chafes 
them, till they which were stiff and numbed, become agile 
and active, and then he falls to work : so faith brings the 
soul, cold and listless enough, God knows, to any duty, unto 
.meditation of the peerless, matchless love of God in Christ 
to it, and at this fire stays the Christian's thoughts, till his 
affections begin to kindle and come to some sense of his love 
to God, and then the Christian bestirs himself for God with 
might and main. 

When a rosebud is formed, if the soil is soft and the sky 
is genial, it is not long before it bursts, for the life within it is 
so abundant that it can no longer contain it all, but in 
blossomed brightness and swimming fragrance it must needs 
let forth its joy, and gladden all the air. And if, when thus 
ripe, it refused to e>xpand, it would quickly rot at heart and 



158 



LOVE. 



die. And Christian love is just piety witli its petals fully 
.spread, developing itself and making this a happier world. 
The religion which fancies that it loves God, when it never 
evinces love to a brother, is not piety, but a poor mildewed 
theology, a dogma with a worm at the heart" {Dr. J. Hamilton), 

Orchids. The marvellous provisions of nature to cover 
decay and ruin, and to stay the evil ellects of miasma and 
poison, often form a beautiful illustration of the charity that 
*' covers a muUitude of sins.'* The Eev. James ^^eil refers, 
as an illustration of this, to some of the beautiful orchids 
which grow so singularly in tropical forests. "The long, 
floating, delicate roots of these orchids are thrust out, not 
into earth, but into mid air, from the impure vapours of 
which they draw their nourishment. They live seated on tho 
trunks of huge decaying trees. Since decomposition proceeds 
very rapidly in this hot region, the dying giants of the forest 
would, if left alone, lill the air with foul and poisonous gases. 
Lut the orchid, as it swings on rich fcbtoons over the rotting 
boughs, covers the deformity of the tree with the mantle 
of its own loveliness, absorbs all the foul exhalations, and, 
as in the case of Vanilla, turns them into the perfume of 
its own sweet flowers." Charity is the beautiful orchis 
(1 Pet. iv. 8). Charity spreads the mantle of tender and gener- 
ous love over human frailty and corruption. It clears away 
those harsh suspicions, evil thoughts, and cruel slanders, that, 
like noxious vapours, poison the moral atmosphere. It 
breathes forth in their place the pleasantness of good wishes, 
merciful judgments, and compassionate sympathy, for charity 
" thinketh no evil," beareth all things, believeth all things, 
hopeth all things." Thus love completely ^*covereth all 
sins." In this cold world of ours, it is known only as a rare 
exotic. Its native home is in a brighter land. It issues 
from the throne of God, and fills with its fragrant beauty the 
realms of glory." 

A FRIEND was speaking of a Cornish miner, who had long 
followed Christ. He was once talking to his aged wife; 



LUNATICS. 



159 



" I don't think I shall "be long here, wife ; something seems 
to tell me that I shall soon go home ; but remember, that if 
anything happens to me, there is nothing but love between 
God and my soul." 

Not long after he was killed in a colliery accident, but it 
was always a comfort to his wife to remember his words. 
She was sure — for he had said it — that there was nothing but 
love between God and his soul {Home Words). 

Fear and love. "Every virtue, to be perfect, involves 
two opposite properties — one latent, the other revealed ; the 
one in a state of passive repose, the other in a state of active 
manifestation. So it is with love. Sugar is sweet, yet there 
is acidity in it ; only the acidity, till something evolves it, lies 
latent within the sugar's sweetness " (Rev, Stephen Jenner), 

LUITATICS. 

In the United Kingdom, the number of the insane has 
almost doubled in the last twenty years, increasing three 
times faster than the ratio of the population; viz. in 1860, 
65,130 ; in 1880, 112,590. The totalnumber under the care 
of the commissioners is registered at 93,385, leaving unregis- 
tered and taken care of by their friends, 19,205. Of these 
83,757 were of the working classes, 28,833 of the middle 
classes. 

In England and Wales alone, the number in 1880 was 
81,570 ; under the care of the commissioners, 71,191. 

The total expense of those maintained at the public cost 
causes an annual expenditure of about £23 each in Ireland, 
£24 in Scotland, and £25 in England, making for the whole 
United Kingdom about £2,000,000. If you add to this the 
probable expense of those maintained by their friends, it will 
make a total of about £3,000,000 a year. 

It is remarkable, that Great Britain has a larger proportion 
of lunacy than other countries. As a rule, the [N'ew World 
and the British Colonies are less afflicted with this sad calamity 
than Europe, 



160 



LUNATICS. 



The proportion of lunatics in Great Britain is said to 
in comparison 69 per cent, of the working classes, to 31 of 
the upper and middle. 

Causes. Lord Shaftesbury has said, that 60 per cent, of 
the lunacy of the United Kingdom is the result of intemper- 
ance. Such an estimate includes probably, not only the 
numbers suffering from the result of personal drunkenness, 
but of the results in the issue of drunken parents. 

Dr. Mitchell ascribes 14 per cent, of the insanity of the 
United Kingdom to inter-marriage. Two per cent, of all the 
marriages in England are between cousins, whilst in Spain 
and Italy, where such marriages are very rare, and can only 
Le ratified l>y special license from the Vatican, insanity is 
proportionably rare. 

No (picstiun, the effect of drink is one of the most fearful 
promoters of insanity. In France, when the simple wines 
of the country were drunk, it was comparatively small ; since 
absinthe has bien so largely used, insanity has frightfully 
increased. The proportions uf cases arising from this cause have 
been given, by an experienced writer, as — Denmark, 10 per 
cent.; United Stat'\=;, 12 per cent. ; Great Britain, 14 j)er cent.; 
France, 15 per cent., without including the great number due 
to drunken parents, to which Dr. Howe estimates 48 per cent, 
of the total number of idiots (now over 49,000). In an inter- 
esting report of the Brentwood Asylum in Essex, it is stated 
that during the 26 years it Ins been opened, the number of 
patients admitted has been 4886. Of these 2267 were males, 
and 2619 females. So far as could be ascertained, the causes 
of lunacy were as follovrs : Anxiety, 120; cruelty of hus- 
bamls, 12 ; death of relatives, 97 ; disappointment in love, 52 ; 
domestic troubles, 91 ; fright, 39 ; imprisonment, 11 ; jealousy, 
13; poverty, 89; religion, 185; remorse, 7; seduction, 3; 
unexpected prosperity, 1 ; congenital defect, 166 ; epilepsy, 
360 ; hereditary predispositions, 573 ; intemperance, 470; 
paralysis, 148 ; sunstroke, 52. In 1481 cases the causes are 
unknown. Thus heredity stands first, intemperance second, 



LUNATICS. 



161 



and epilepsy third. It must be remembered, however, that 
heredity and epilepsy largely result from intemperance ; and 
the same may be said of many other of the causes, as anxiety, 
cruelty of husbands, &c., so that drink may be credited with 
two-thirds to three-fourths of the helpless wretchedness and 
misery of lunacy. 

The loss of friends is a frequent cause of lunacy ; and it is 
not surprising to find from the published tables, that its effect 
on women compared with men is as 10 to 4 per cent. Acci- 
dents, on the other hand, claim 5 per cent, of males, and only 
2 of females. 

Over-study is said by Dr. Jarvis to produce 1 1 per cent, of 
the insanity in the United States. 

Mrs. Schimmelpenninck. It is a fact referred to in her 
memoirs, that a lady who with her husband had inspected 
a large number of the lunatic asylums of England and the 
continent, found, on investigation, that the most numerous 
class of patients were composed of those who had been only 
children, with no brothers or sisters, and whose wills had 
never been brought into proper discipline in early life. Those 
who were members of large families, and who had been well 
trained from childhood, were seldom found as victims to the 
dreadful malady. 

A GENTLEMAN was ouce Walking through a lunatic asylum, 
when a patient came forward and accosted him : " Sir, have 
you thanked God this morning for your reason] I've lost 
mine." 

The following well-known lines are said to have been 
composed by a lunatic, and were found written on the wall of 
his room after his death. 

" Could we with ink the ocean fill. 

And were the skies of parchment made ; 
Were every stalk on earth a quill, 

And every man a scribe by trade, — 
To write the love of God above 

Would drain the ocean dry • 
Kor would the scroll contain the whole, 

Though stretched from sky to sky." 

M 



162 



LUXURIES. 



" There is a kind of frenzy and madness, in wliicli a man 
will discourse soberly and rationally, till you come to speak of 
one particular subject that was the occasion of his distemper ; 
here he is quite out, and loses his reason. Oh, how many 
men and women tve there among us who in any matter of the 
world are shrewd enough, but when you come to speak of the 
things of God, of Christ, and sin, it is strange to see how 
sadly their reason is gone ; they cannot understand these 
things as they can whose understanding is sound " {Anon), 

What the ancient philosopher said of anger, that it is a 
short madness, we may say of all sins. 

Eecovery. From the average of ten years statistics for 
England, it appears that women are not only less liable to 
insanity than men, but that also the disease assumes with 
them a less malignant iunii. The rate of recovery was for men 
35 })er cent., for women 43 per cent. ; the annual death-rate 
of the insane was for men 12 per cent., for women only 9. 

LUXUEIES. 

At the meeting of the r>ritish Association for 1882, the 
Committee appointed to make in([uiry into the relation of 
wages and other sources of income, to the economic ])rogress 
of the United Kingdom, presented their report, which was 
read by Professor Leoni Levi. The Committee divided the 
community into the operative, and the middle and higher 
classes. They reckoned luxuries to include fruit, beer, spirits, 
wine, silk, silver, plate and jewellery, tobacco, theatres, and 
amusements. The income of the working classes was repre- 
sented as £436,000,000, and of the middle and higher classes 
as X564,000,000. The expenditure of the operative classes 
was £423,000,000, being on necessaries £338,000,000, and on 
luxuries £85,000,000; and of the middle and upper classes, 
£454,000,000, being on necessaries £390,000,000^ on luxuries 
£64,000,000. Thus the expenditure of the operative classes 
on necessaries is 80 per cent., and on luxuries 20 per cent. • 
and of the middle and higher classes, on necessaries 86 per 



LYING PUNISHED. 



1G3 



cent., and on luxuries 14 per cent, respectively. Many very 
interesting remarks were made in the discussions. The taxation 
of the different classes is very startling. The taxation of the 
working classes is 16s. Id. per year, and that of the middle and 
higher classes £16 16s. lOd. a sovereign for every shilling! 
It is also remarkahle, that the surplus of the working classes 
was only 3 per cent., and of the other classes 20 per cent. 
From 1840 — 1880 the increase in the use of beer and spirits 
was 75 per cent., the increase in the use of raw sugar and tea 
and cocoa was 272 per cent. 

LYIXG PUOTSHED. 

Archbishop Leighton. One day there happened a tre- 
mendous storm of thunder and lightning as Archbishop 
Leighton was travelling from Glasgow to Dunblane. He 
was descried, when at a distance, by two men of bad char- 
acter. They had not courage to rob him, but wishing to 
follow some method of extorting money, one said, I will lie 
down by the wayside as if I were dead, and you shall inform the 
archbishop that I was killed by the lightning, and beg money 
of him to bury me.'' Archbishop Leighton soon came up, and 
sympathized with the survivor, gave him money, and pro- 
ceeded on his journey. But when the man returned to his 
companion he found him really lifeless, and cried out, " Oh, 
sir, he is dead ! he is dead 1 " The archbishop thus discovered 
the fraud, and left the man with the important reflection. 

It is a dangerous thing to trifle with the judgments of God.'' 

MAEEIAGES. 

The number of marriages in England and "Wales, for the 
40 years between 1840 and 1879 inclusive, were 6,617,188. 
The number in England in 1882 were 197,290. 

In 1871, out of a population of 22,500,000, 9,000,000 
were married, and of the rest, 8,000,000 were under 15; 
so leaving only 5,500,000 of bachelors and spinsters "open 
to ofl"ers " j or, if we consider the proper age to be 20 and 

M 2 



164 



MARRIAGES. 



upwards, the whole number of unmarried people who might 
have been married was 3,500,000. 3G,000 of the wives were 
under 20, but only 6000 of the husbands were under 20. 

Age. The average age when marriages took place between 
18G1-71 was 25 years; and the probable duration of such 
persons' married life was 27 years. 

Of every 100 men above 20 years at present, 27 are 
bacljelors, 66 husbands, 7 widowers. Of every 100 women, 
26 are spinsters, 61 wives, and 13 widows. 

In London in 1882, from the official returns, it appears 
that 84*3 per cent, of the marriages were solemnized in the 
Cliurch of England, whilst only 3*8 per cent. >vere in Protest- 
ant Dissenting chapels. About double this latter proportion, 
viz. 7 '3 per cent., took place at the office of the Kegistrar, and 
3 '6 per cent, at Koman Catholic chapels. 

Wedding-rings. The duty on wedding-rings is 17^. per 
oz., and the revenue for them about £20,000 a year. The 
fashion of wearing very thick rings has increased the revenue 
of late years from £6000 to £20,000. In no other country 
is the wedding-ring taxed ! 

Time. It is found by the returns for our own country, 
that of all the months in the year the smallest number of 
marriages take place in May, and the largest number in 
December. One-twenty-fifth of the whole takes place on 
Christmas Day. !N'ext to December comes June, and in the 
agricultural districts October. 

The rate of marriages is always ruled by the state of trade 
and national prosperity. 

Good advice. A clergyman who had married many a 
couple, was always in the habit of whispering to the wife as 
his caution against conjugal differences, Be sure never to 
have the last word," — advice which one remarks is excellent, 
but which is surpassed by the recommendation that neither 
party should have the first word ! 

It was the shrewd remark of another venerable clergyman, 

Eemember the husband is the head ; though the wife may 



MEEKNESS. 



165 



he the neck. The head is to rule j but the neck may guide 
the head ! " 

MEEKITESS. 

The elder-tree. " This timber," said Gotthold, speaking 
of the elder-tree, " is the softest, and can, without difficulty, 
be split, cut, and wrought ; and yet experience proves that it 
does not rot. The greater part of the city of Venice stands 
upon piles of elder, which, sunk in the sea, form the founda- 
tions of massive buildings. It is the same with meek hearts. 
There is no better foundation for important undertakings for 
public or private utility, than that intelligent modesty which 
is gentle indeed, and ready to yield, as far as a good conscience 
will allow ; but which, nevertheless, lasts and continues stable 
in the flood of contradiction. " Lord Jesus, Thou wert ever 
meek and humble in heart, and on Thy love and meekness the 
fabric of our salvation was founded, and still subsists. Wert 
not Thou meek and patient, how can any of us be saved ] 
Give to me a meek and loving heart, and let them be the 
foundation of all my intercourse with man." 

The following touching incident is narrated by the Eev. 
\y. Niven, the particulars of which were well known to him, — 

A Scottish gentleman, who had succeeded to some property 
in America, and had settled in that country, had unhappily 
imbibed infidel views, and for more than twenty years had 
absented himself from public worship, giving himself over to 
a careless life. 

One night he happened to be out late, and on his return 
home, he heard a noise proceeding from the cabin of one of 
his negroes. This man was one whom he had treated unmer- 
cifully, and had ordered to be beaten a few hours before. He 
paused and listened to the sound. It was the negro at 
prayer ; and the subject of his prayer was his master. The 
simple and affecting words were these : God, bless poor 
massa ; show him mercy, that he may be merciful ; make 
him holy, that he may be happy." 



166 



MERCY. 



The master was rivetted and solemnized, and wont home 
with feehngs not to be described. The fact that this poor 
man, after the cruel treatment which he had so recently 
received, was spending the night in prayer for him, convinced 
him that there must be a power in Christianity of which he 
was wliolly ignorant. He immediately devoted his attention 
to tlie study of Christian evidences, and by God's blessing, he 
became a true believer. 

Some years afterwards, he was induced to enter the ministry, 
and alter a long period of faithful and fruitful labour, he 
died a Bishop of the American Episcopal Church. 

The IiEV. Charles Simeon. Bishop Mcllvainc, on a 
visit to lCnL,dand, was exceedingly struck with the remarkable 
period of Mr. Simeon's life, when he endured so patiently 
the closing of his church against him for a second service, 
and the locking of the pews during all services. The special 
text that restrained him, when he thouglit of using the law 
to open the doors, ^vas, " The servant of the Lord must not 
strive." I think," the Bishop adds, " that part of his history 
was one of the strongest exhibitions of his Master's spirit, 
because it was so contrary to the peculiar impulsiveness and 
upjDishness of his natural temperament." 

Abon Hanifah, chief of a Turkish sect, once received a 
blow on the face from a ruffian, and rebuked him in these 
terms, not unworthy of a Christian : "If I were vindictive, 
I should return you blow for blow. If I were an informer, 
I should accuse you to the caliph ; but I prefer putting up 
a prayer to God, that in the day of judgment He v/ill cause 
me to enter heaven with you.'' 

MERCY. 

I HAVE often wondered at those double words, intensified 
in their pregnant meaning — God's " tender mercies," and His 
"loving-kindness.'' Tender mercies," — why, all mercy is 
tender, by its very nature ; who would s;peak of stern mercy, 
severe mercy 1 But " tender mercy " is the tenderest degree, 



MERCY. 



167 



tlie gentlest exhibition of mercy, even Divine. It is like speak- 
ing of merciful mercy " ! So, do we speak of God's loving- 
kindness 1 Why, all love is kind, and all kindness is loving. 
Loving-kindness, then, is like the most loving love, the 
kindest kindness ; and to make it stranger still, the prophet 
doubles the word, as (Isa. Ixiii. 7) " his loving-kindnesses," 
and would even then, as it were, multiply every single 
instance by an enumeration which has no assigned limit, 
" according to His mercies, and according to the multitude of 
His loving-kindnesses." Oh, believer, how little thou knowest 
the ocean fulness of your privilege ! In the dew-drops which 
top every spike of grass, and sow the sward with orient pearls, 
you may see something of " the multitude of His mercies. 
True, the dew may pass away, the morning sun may dissolve 
those countless pearls, but His mercies never. The stream 
has flowed on day by day, and night by night, and is still 
flowing ; yea, and it will flow so long as mercy shall bo 
needed, and so long as He is " the Father of mercies." 

There is a story told of one who in a dream thought him- 
self in a held during a thunderstorm, and ran for refuge to 
houses close by. At the entrance to the first he was asked 
who he was. On replying, the master said, I am Justice ; 
you must not look for any comfort from me, but the contrary. 
At another house he was answered, that there dwelt Truth, 
one v*^hom he had never loved, and must therefore expect no 
shelter there. The third house belonged to Peace, and there 
he finds the like entertainment. In the midst of his dis- 
traction, he lights upon the house of Mercy, and there humbly 
desiring entrance, was made welcome and refreshed. So, 
when the habitations of Justice, Truth, and Peace are bolted 
fast upon the anxious soul, there are the gates of Mercy wide 
open, there being no salvation but by the mercies of God and 
Christ Jesus {Sjjencer). 



168 



A MINUTE. 



MINUTE, A. 

What a busy world ours is ! There are some people who 
can find nothing to do," who speak of killing time ; '* 
**Time hangs heavily on their hands." Hoav strange, when 
the world is so full of work, and " there is so much to be 
done, and so little time to do it in.'' How many tilings are 
always going on in the world every miuute ! There is about 
one birth every minute. 

It is said, one musket is manufactured at Bu-mingham every 
minute all through the day. 

Taking the whole number of letters sent through the post 
in every part of the world, about 7620 letters are posted every 
minute, and about 212 telegrams sent ! 

According to the * Eailway Kews,' some few years ago, the 
trains belonging to the different railways enter London at the 
average rate of about 5-i per hour, or nearly a train a minute. 

About eight copies of the Bible, in whole or in part, are 
issued by the British and Foreign Bible Society every minute, 
reckoning the whole 24 hours of the six working days of the 
week. 

A SMALL VESSEL was uearlng the Steep Holm, in the Bristol 
Channel. The captain stood on the deck, his watch in his 
hand, and his eyes fixed upon it. A terrible tempest had 
driven them onward, and the vessel was a scene of devasta- 
tion. The wind and tide drove it fiercely forward. Every 
moment they were hurrying nearer the sullen rock, which knew 
no mercy, on which many a vessel had foundered, and many 
a crew had perished. Still the captain stood motionless, 
speechless, looking at his watch. We are lost," all around 
him seemed to think. Suddenly his eye glanced across the 
sea, he stood erect ; another moment, and he cried, " Thank 
God, we are saved, the tide has turned ; in one minute more 
we should have been on the rocks." He returned his watch 
to his pocket, and if they had never felt it before, assuredly 
both he and the crew learned that day the value of a minute. 



MISSIONAEY WOEK. 



169 



MISSIOlsrAEY WOEK. 

History. In the earliest ages missionaries were sent forth. 
Not to speak of the missions of the Church of Rome, which 
form a mingled record, in some cases, of heroic courage, 
and in others, of Jesuitical unreality and deceit; nor of 
the Mediseval Missions and of the missions of St. Patrick, 
Columha, &c. ; let us begin from the time of the Reformation. 

Both in Germany and England, the obligation of mission 
work was much laid upon the mind of the Reformers. Luther 
and Cranmer both felt it, though they were not able to effect 
much, from many causes. The first Protestant mission to 
evangelize the heathen was sent by Calvin and the Church of 
Geneva to Brazil in 1555. Fourteen missionaries set out on 
an expedition which had been set on foot by Admiral Coligni ; 
but the effort failed through the treachery of the leader, 
Yillegagnon. The greater part of the colonists were forced 
to return home, and those who remained behind were 
murdered. 

About four years later, a.d. 1559, a mission was undertaken 
to Lapland, under the royal sanction of Gustavus Yasa, King 
of Sweden, and maintained by his successors. 

The seventeenth century is distinguished by the self-denying 
labours of Eliot, the Apostle of the Indians, which were 
blessed with considerable success ; the Mayhews, a remark- 
able family, five generations of whom laboured in the same 
field among the [N'orth American Indians, one till he w^as 
ninefcy-three years of age. In the same century the Dutch 
sought to Christianize the settlements of Ceylon, Java, and 
other Asiatic territories, but in a way far from being com- 
mendable. They issued a proclamation that no native should 
attain military promotion, or have Government employment, 
until he had been received as a member of the Protestant 
Church, and had agreed to the Helvetic Confession of Faith. 
A large number of converts were made ; but afterwards, when 
the Government fell to the British rule, a great proportion 
fell away. The effort was useful, however, in attempting a 



170 



MISSIONARY WORK. 



translation of the Gospels into Cingalese. In the middle 
of the century, the first direct missionary society in 
England was founded in 1649. An ordinance passed the 
English Parliament for the formation of a " Society for the 
Propagation of the Gospel in jSTew England," for which a 
general collection was made through the whole country, and 
lands to the value of £500 or £600 per annum were pur- 
chased. At the Restoration, this society was revived in 
1661 by a Eoyal Charter from Charles II. ; and under the 
presidency of the Hon. Robert Boyle, did much to promote 
the work of missions. In 1698 the venerable " Society for 
Promotuig Christian Knowledge" was formed, which, though 
not professedly a missionary society, in various ways helped 
mission work, not only lending aid to the Danish missions in 
Tran([uel)ar, but afterwards supporting a mission of its own 
in India. 

In the eighteenth century, the missionary spirit took a 
direct form in the formation of the " Society for the Propa- 
gation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts." In 1705 the richly- 
endowed Royal Danish IMissionary Society was founded by 
the pious Frederick lY. of Denmark. The king had been 
touched by the first letter he opened one morning, telling the 
sad case of a poor widow, whose husband had fallen in battle, 
with her eldest son, in Tranquebar. The king felt much 
moved. Since 1620 Tranquel)ar had been a Danish posses- 
sion, and nothing had been done for its spiritual good. He 
sent for his chaplain, Dr. Lutkens, to consult him. Who 
will go there V he asked, " to declare the Gospel of Christ 1 " 
*^My king, send me," said the venerable chaplain. But this 
the king v/ould not consent to. In God's providence, a young 
man and his friend were found in Germany, who had been 
trained under Francke of Halle, and these two went forth, 
Ziegenbolg and Plutchor, the first missionaries from the 
German Evangelical Church to the heathen. They were two 
noble brothers in Christ. They had studied together, found 
the Saviour together, and went forth together, to share the 



MISSIONARY WORK. 



171 



perils and liardships of a missionary life. In tlie middle of 
this century, the Moravian Church began (in 1721) its noble 
course of mission work. Six hundred exiles started forth to 
preach the gospel to the heathen. The close of this century 
was marked by the commencement of the Baptist Missionary 
Society in 1792; the London Missionary Society, 1795; the 
Scottish Missionary Society, 1796 ; the ]N"etherlands Mission- 
ary Society, 1797 ; the Church Missionary Society, 1799. 

Early in the nineteenth century, other societies followed : the 
American Eoard of INIissions, 1810; the Wesleyan Missionary 
Society organized, 1813, &c. Most of the continental societies 
are not less than fifty years old — as the Basle, the Ehenists, 
the Berlin, the Leipsic, the Hermannsburg, the Swedish, and 
the Paris Evangelical. They have amply supplied their full 
quota of missionaries. Several of the earliest missionaries 
sent out by the English societies were Germans. Such men 
as Ziegenbolg, Schwatz, Krapf, Eebmann, Yanderkemp, and 
Gossner, have added honour and dignity to the roll of the 
missionary heroes. 

Early opposition. "When the great scheme of sending 
the gospel to the heathen was first proposed, it was scouted 
by the authorities, not only of the State, but of the Church. 
When William Carey, full of zeal, persisted, despite of dis- 
couragement, to press the matter upon a meeting of Baptist 
ministers at ^Northampton, the president rose in anger and 
said, " Young man, sit down ; when God is pleased to convert 
the heathen, He will do it, without your aid or mine." In 
1793, when certain clauses were proposed to be inserted in 
the East India Company's charter then renewed, in favour 
of missionary work, Bishop Horsley, a man of great scholar- 
ship and high character, deprecated "any attempt to interfere 
with the religions, the laws, or local customs of the people of 
India," alleging that, as Christians, there was no obligation 
upon us to attempt their conversion, and that " the command 
of our Saviour to preach the gospel to all nations, did not, 
as he conceived, apply to us.'' The Marquis of Hastings 



172 



MISSIONARY WORK. 



dismissed a chaplain iu India for distributing tracts, alleging 
" that the man who would be so rash as to do such an act, 
would let off a pistol in a powder magazine." In Scotland, 
the Kirk was opposed to foreign missions for many years. 
The General Assembly passed a resolution in 1796, that the 
idea of converting the heathen was " highly preposterous." 
Twenty-eight years after, the Kirk sent forth Alexander Duff 
as its first missionary. In America, the work of missions 
began very slowly. The men who founded the American 
" Board of ^Missions" in 1810, were regarded as visionary and 
fanatical ; and when the application for a charter for the 
Loard came before the Legislature of ^Massachusetts, a member 
0[ ►posed the granting of it. We have," he said, " no religion 
to spare." 

Progress. To collect really accurate statistics of missionary 
progress is a task of the greatest dithculty. But no Christian 
can look at the work done by the Church of Christ in the last 
hundred years, without saying with devout admiration, 
^' What hath God wrought ! " The extent to which missions 
have already spread may be judged of by the fact, that Mr. 
Lainbridge, an American of Providence, Phode Island, with 
the American love of foreign travel, and desiring to turn his 
travels to good account, left America in 1880 to take a voyage 
*^ round the world," and see all the Christian missions spread 
in its many parts. The record of his travels fills a book of 
583 pages, and records the marvellous triumphs in every clime 
of the Gospel of Christ. 

To present some tangible evidence of the progress of 
Missions, as Professor Christlieb said a few years ago, take 
one or two plain facts. At the close of the last century 
there were only seven Protestant missionary societies, properly 
so-called, existing. Of these, three only (the Society for 
Promoting Christian Knowledge, which laboured chiefly 
among English colonists, the Halle-Danish, and the Mor- 
avian) had been at work for the greater part of the century ; 
whilst three (the Baptist, the London, and the Church 



MISSIONARY WOEK. 



173 



Missionary Societies) began to exist only in tlie last ten years. 
'Now, the seven have risen to seventy societies, distributed 
thus : Great Britain, 27 ; America, 18 ; Germany, 9 ; Holland, 
9 ; Scandinavia, Denmark, and Finland, 5 ; France, 1 ; Canton 
de Yaud, 1. To these must be added, not only several inde- 
pendent societies in the colonies, but also several missionary 
associations, composed of Christians won from heathendom, 
supporting agents of their own. 

Taking the whole world, there are probably about 80 dif- 
ferent missionary societies in operation or more ; about 2500 
ordained European and American missionaries, over 7000 
ordained native preachers, assisted by female missionaries, 
native assistants, &c., making thus a noble body of mission 
agents and native helpers, with about 540,000 native 
Protestant communicants. The whole of the adherents 
and professed converts in the several stations is estimated 
at about 2,000,000. 

Besides these direct and spiritual results, who can deny the 
collateral and indirect blessings which have been conferred on 
the world by missionaries ] 

Even as a great civilizer of the world, the value of missions 
must be acknowledged. Who can look now on Sierra Leone, 
Madagascar, India, Japan, China, the islands of the Pacific, 
New Zealand, and North America, and deny that Christian 
missions have opened a large part of the heathen world 
to commerce and civilized lifel It has been shown, from 
the consular and other reports, that every additional mission- 
ary has been the means of adding indirectly £10,000 a year 
to the commerce of Madagascar, and also to the South Sea 
Islands. A hundred years ago Captain Cook was murdered by 
the savages of the Sandwich Islands : now Honolulu is an 
important port, with a trade of over £600,000 a year. In 
India, since the commencement of mission work, the most 
important changes have been introduced : as the abolition of 
slavery, though it had the sanction of the Koran and the code 
of Menu ; Brahmins have been made amenable to the laws 



174 



MISSIONARY WORK. 



as mucli as the lowest Sudras ; the rite of Suttee has been 
abolished by law ; the marriage of Hindoo widows has been 
rendered valid ; the practice of Dherna and the Gurruck Puja, 
or Swinging Festival, has been made punishable ; the rights of 
property and inheritance have been secured by every one who 
may change his religion ; and the reading the Word of God 
is permitted in the Government colleges and schools. These 
and many similar benefits, in India, China, &c., if not in every 
case directly, are all more or less the results of the influence 
of our missionary agency, and have helped to forward the 
marvellous change, intellectual, moral, and spiritual, which is 
passing now happily over the whole wide world. 

A similar result is acknowledged in the advancement op 
science; in the development of geography, ethnology, philo- 
logy, and other sciences. Christian missionaries have held, tlue 
last eighty years, a most prominent part in these. They have 
reduced many unwritten languages to writing, and compiled 
numerous dictionaries and grammars. The discoveries of 
the Snow Mountains of East Africa, and the explorations of 
Livingstone, have added new fields to our knowledge. 
Livingstone alone travelled 12U,000 miles, and added 
1,000,000 square miles of Central Africa to our knowledge, 
besides discovering five lakes and several rivers. It is a 
striking coincidence to be remembered, that the prize which the 
inhdel Voltaire established for the study of African languages, 
"was awarded a few years ago to the missionary Koelle, whose 
* Polyglotta Africana ' is a marvel of research and patient 
investigation. 

Still, far beyond these secondary benefits, are the untold 
SPIRITUAL blessings conferred upon the world, and these no 
human pen could adequately write. The record of our various 
missionary societies is a record of Christian triumph, which 
has never been surpassed since the foundation of the Church 
of Christ. As servants of Chiist, vast numbers have gone 
forth from Europe and America, sacrificing home comforts, 
family, friends, and earthly prospects, to carry the gospel of 



]\IISSIOiTA?.Y WORK. 



175 



Christ to the untaiiglit heathen, many of whom liave died as 
martyrs in tlie work ; in these, and in the still larger army of 
converts gathered from every class and every clime, — a goodly 
portion of whom have themselves become native missionaries 
to their fellow-countrymen ; in tlie thousands of those who 
have lived a holy life and died a peaceful death ; we have the 
best answer to the question sometimes asked, Have missions 
been a failure 1 

Christian courage and self-sacrifice — pre-eminently the 
inseparable accompaniment of missionary work. There is not 
a mission which cannot be adduced as an example. Take 
West Africa as one. From the unhealthy climate, it was long 
called " the white man's grave." The early missionaries went 
out, one after another, witi . martyrdom full in view. In 1768 
a party of nine were sent out by the Moravians to the coast 
of Guinea, but within two years they all died, and the mission 
was abandoned. In 1798 there were six sent by other 
societies to the neighbourhood of Sierra Leone, and within 
two years three died, one was murdered, and the mission was 
given up. During the first twenty years of the Church 
Missionary Society, no less than fifty- three missionaries, or 
missionaries' wives, died at their post ; and for the first twelve 
years the Society was without the encouragement of a single 
baptism. In 1823 five missionaries went out from the Church 
Missionary Society; four died within six months. In 1825 
six went out, and two died within the first four months. In 
1826 three went out, and two died within six months. Yet, 
notwithstanding all the danger and discouragement, there was 
never wanting " another man to take the colours,'' and what 
has been the result 1 Scarcely any mission has been more 
blessed. Of the present population of Sierra Leone, of about 
37,000, 32,000 are professing Christians, and the mission has 
developed into a self-supporting Church ; and there is not a 
single European minister, the pastor of any Church, there now. 
It has itself also become a Missionary Church, and during the 
last thirty-three years, has sent out fifty educated native 



176 



MISSIONARY WORK. 



pastors to work as missionaries, the greatest part of whom are 
on the Yoruba and the !Niger. 

The same Christian heroism was ilhistrated in the Xiger 
mission. Fifty Europeans out of one hundred and fifty died 
within sixty-one days. Yet it is now a field of richest promise 
and blessing, watched over by a native bishop, and a noble 
band of Christian workers. 

A similar history might be added of nearly every important 
mission now occupied by the Church of Christ. 

Working xVnd waitixg. It is one of the valuable lessons 
taught by the history of missions, that most of our important 
missions have been at the beginning, for a long time, unpro- 
ductive ; yet, tliat those fields yielded in the end the most 
abundant harvests. The Church Missionary Society's mission, 
e. g. to Sierra Leone, was undertaken in 1804. During the 
first eleven years fifteen missionaries went there, seven of 
whom found an early grave ; yet it was not till twelve years 
after (ISIG) that fruit began to appear. Mr. Johnston, 
speaking of that period, wrote, ^'Thus I went on speaking, 
morning and night, and on Sundays three times, but saw no 
fruit of conversion ; on the contrary, I was much discouraged ; 
for when I had done speaking, they would come and ask me 
for clothing,*' &c. Yet in that very year his successes began, 
and when he died in 1823, there were no less than 623 
communicants and 3168 scholars connected with the mission. 

So in New Zealand. The Eev. Samuel Marsden preached 
his first sermon there on Christmas Day 1814. It was not 
till 1823, nine years after, that the first baptism took place; 
then two years more before a second ; nearly five years after 
before the first communicant. How changed is ]^ew Zealand 
now ! 

Madagascar, the scene of such bitter persecution and 
heroic courage, has now 250,000 professing Christians, and 
70,000 communicants. 

China, where Dr. Morrison went in 1807. He baptized 
his first convert in 1814. E"owhere have there been greater 



MISSIONARY WORK. 



177 



difficulties to surmount ; yet there are now thirty different 
societies working in that vast empire, with a result of 60,000 
professing Christians and 20,000 communicants. So Judson 
laboured in Burmah seven years before he had one convert. 
In Tahiti it was sixteen years. 

In the Society Islands for sixteen years, notwithstanding 
the untiring labours and incessant journeys of devoted men, 
no spirit of interest or inquiry appeared, no solitary instance 
of conversion could be recorded. 

In Eastern and Southern Polynesia more than 300 islands 
have thrown away their idolatry and its cruelties and embraced 
Christianity; and many are in spiritual beauty now "gems 
of the ocean." 

In the Church Missionary Society's interesting Fuhkien 
Mission, the first eleven years passed without a single convert 
appearing. Two out of five missionaries had died in that 
time, and two had retired. The fifth died soon after gathering 
the first fruits of his labour, leaving a new-comer, the Eev. 
J. R. Wolfe, in charge. After that, the work of success began ; 
and now, after fourteen years of labour, there are about 3000 
adult converts in about 100 towns and villages, of whom 
1250 are communicants; four native clergy (besides three 
dead), 100 catechists, and about one hundred voluntary helpers, 
nine churches, and 70 preaching-places. 

Contributions. It is difficult to ascertain the exact 
amount of money which has been spent in missions since 
the organization of the great societies. Doubtless, could it 
be known, it would represent no small " offering ; " still more 
so if we could know the self-denial with which a large part 
has been presented. Taking the statistics compiled by Canon 
Robertson, of British contributions for the last eleven years, 
we have the following list : — 

Total British contributions for 1871 ... £855,742 

1872 ... 882,886 
„ „ „ 1873 ... 1,032,176 



178 



MISSIONARY WORK. 



Total British contributions for 1874 


... £1,009,199 


j» J) >) >> 


1875 


1,048,408 


;j •> J? J) 


TOT/* 

1876 


1,048,472 


37 77 7 7 37 


1 ft77 
lo< < 


1,000,793 


7' !> 7' 7? 


1878 


1 ATI Q ^ /I 

1,U / i,y -i4: 


77 77 77 


1879 


1,086,678 


?J )) ;7 7» 


1880 


1,108,950 


77 77 77 77 


1881 


1,093,569 



This does not include any interest on investments, nor 
"balance in hand at the beginning of the year, nor any foreign 
contributions. 

If these annual receipts be analyzed (say for the last year 
of 1881-2), the statement is as follows : 

21 Societies of the Church of England and ) £^qq ^gg 

Ireland ... ... ... j ' 

11 Societies — Church and ]Sronconfonuists 153,320 

15 Societies — Nonconformists ... 313,177 

25 Societies — Scotch and Irish Presby- ) 155757 

terians ... ... ... j ' 

2 Societies — Eoman Catholic ... 10,910 

£1,093,569 

From the record of the receipts for 1871, it appears that 
the British receipts were nearly £900,000, and from the 
mission fields £20,000, making a total of £1,100,000. 
This was distributed as follows: for America, West Indies, 
Australia, and Polynesia, about 15 per cent. ; Africa, 11 per 
cent. ; Turkish Empire, 5 per cent. ; China, 5 per cent. ; 
India and Ceylon, 27 per cent.; European IMissions, 14 per 
cent. ; preparation of missionary students, 2 per cent. ; 
disabled missionaries and widows, 3 per cent. ; home expenses 
11 per cent. 

Another account (taking a little wider range) has been 
given in the Annual Classified Directory of Mr. W. L. Howe, 
of the Metropolitan Charities of England and Wales. He 
reckons the receipts for 1877-78 — • 



MISSIONARY WOEK. 



179 



4 Bible Societies as 
14 Book and Tract Societies 



£221,523 
86,791 



£308,314 



57 Home Missions 

10 Home and Foreign Missions 

22 Foreign Missions 



... £436,398 
... 118,231 
... 775,214 



-£1,329,843 
£1,638,157 



Mr. Smiles, in his excellent book on ^ Duty,' compares the 
money spent on missions with the amount spent on war. 

From 1800—1850 not less than £14,500,000 was devoted 
by the British people to Christian missions. But during 
the same time we had expended on war and the materials 
of war not less than £1,200,000,000 sterling." 

The young. One of the pleasing signs of the times " 
is, the interest taken in missions by the young. Our public 
schools, and the different sections of the Church, show this 
more every year. Eton has now for several years largely 
assisted the work in Malanesia. From Tunbridge Grammar 
School, the Surrey County School, Highgate School, the Leeds 
Clergy School, nearly £50 was received for the Cambridge 
Delhi Mission during 1881. More than thirty African teachers 
and scholars are supported in the schools of the Central 
African Mission, each by a separate Church Sunday school 
in England. For this purpose, each school must contribute 
at least £7 per annum. It is cheering to find more than 
thirty Sunday schools do this, in behalf of one society alone. 

The large amount of missionary literature now circu- 
lated, is also increasing rapidly every year. In the Church 
Missionary Society alone, over 2,000,000 of magazines were 
published for the young last year. 

i^ATiVE AGENCY. The Eev. C. B. Leupolt, speaking of 
native agency, mentions the following incident. At one 
of our preaching places a large crowd was gathered. At 
length a Brahmin called out, "Look at these men and see 
what they are doing ! What has the sahib in his hand " 
" The ITew Testament." " Yes, the K'ew Testament ; but 



N 2 



180 



MISSIONARY WORK. 



Avliat is tliat] It is tlie gospel axe, into wliicli a European 
liaiidlc lias been put. If you come to-day you will find them 
cutting ; come to-morrow, and you will lind them doing tlio 
same. And at what are they cutting] At our noble tree 
of Hinduism— at our ridigion. It has taken thousands of 
years for the tree to take root in the soil of Hindustan. liUt 
these men come daily with the gospel axe in tlieii hand, and 
it must finally give way." 

True," I replied; 'Mjut remember, many a ]ioor handle 
gets worn out, and. many a one breaks ; and it takes a long 
time till a new handle is obtained from Europe, and till tiiat 
handle is prepared and shaped." 

''Ah," he replied; "if that were all, it would be well 
enough, and the tree would have respite; Init what is the 
real case ] No sooner does the handle find it can no longer 
swing the axe, than it says, * What am I to do now] I am 
becoming worn out; I em no longer swing the axe ! Am 
I to give up cutting] No.^ Then he walks up to the 
tree, looks at it, and says, ^ Here is a line branch, out of 
which a handle migiit be made.' Up goes the axe, down 
comes the branch ; the branch is soon shaped into a handle ; 
tlie European handle is t ikeii out and the native handle put 
in, and the swinging commences afresh. The tree, finally, 
will be cut down by handles made of its own branches." 

**Well spoken," said Mr. Leupolt. May the tree soon 
fall, and then we will plant a new one, which will blossom 
and bear fruit to the glory of God." 

AVhat leads men to become missionaries. In 1867 a 
most interesting inquiry was instituted by the Principal of 
the Church Missionary College at Islington. He had long 
wished to ascertain, so far as could be traced, what were the 
motives which first led the students to devote themselves to 
missionary labour ; and at that time instituted a particular 
inquiry. The result was as follows : — Out of 41 students 
tlien in the house, 4, or one-tenth, were first moved by 
missionary sermons ; 6 through attendance at missionary 



MONEY. 



181 



meetings ; 3 tliroiigli connection with Sunday Schools ; 
6 through connection with Christian Young Men's Associ- 
ations ; 2 were brought from the universities ; 2 through 
parental influence and example ; 3 from special appeals of 
the committee; 13 from direct individual efforts of Christian 
counsellors ; 2 to the reading of missionary publications and 
periodicals. 

The ^ City Press * says, that from carefully-prepared sta- 
tistics, there are now about 310,000,000 silver coins, and 
130,000,000 gold coins in circulation. Of bronze, since the 
institution of the Eoyal Mint, more than 6000 tons have been 
struck and issued. There are about 800,000,000 bronze 
coins in the hands and pockets of her Majesty's subjects ; 
so that altogether there are about 1,230,000,000 coins of 
different values now in use. 

How A. MAN ACTS about money — how he makes it, spends it, 
saves it, keeps it, thinks about it — is one of the best tests of 
his moral and spiritual state ; so that, as Henry Taylor says, 
in his thoughtful ^I^^'otes from Life,' ^^a right measure and 
manner in getting, saving, spending, giving, taking, lending, 
borrowing, and bequeathing, would almost argue a perfect 
man." 

The TRUE VALUE OF MONEY. Whilst acknowledging the 
incalculable power of money for good or for evil, Mr. 
Smiles, in his ^ Self Help,' says : " The power of money is 
on the whole over-estimated. The greatest things that have 
been done for the world have not been accomplished by rich 
men, or by subscription lists, but by men generally of small 
pecuniary means. Christianity was propagated half over the 
world by men of the poorest class. The greatest thinkers, 
discoverers, inventors, and artists have been men of moderate 
wealth, many of them little raised above the condition of 
manual labourers." 

Money's power and weakness. Money will buy plenty, 



182 



MONEY. 



but not peace ; money will furnish your table with luxuries, 
but not with an appetite to enjoy them ; money will surround 
your bed with physicians, but not restore health to your 
sickly frame ; it will encompass you with a crowd of flatterers, 
but never promise you one true friend ; it will bribe into 
silence the tongues of accusiug men, but not an accusing 
conscience ; it will pay some debts, but not one, even the 
least, of your debts to the law of God ; it will relieve many 
fears, but not those of guilt, the terror that crowns the brows 
of death." — Guthrie, 

There is too much truth in the remark that has been made, 

Gold is an idol worshipped in all climates without a temple, 
and by all classes without a single hypocrite/' 

Inordinate love of. A young man once picked up a 
sovereign he found lying on the road. It was what men call 
a happy accident," but the effect was ill. Ever afterwards, 
as he walked along, he kept his eyes fixed upon the ground, 
hoping to find another. And in the course of a long life he 
did pick up, at difl'erent times, a number of coins. But all 
those years he was cherishing and fostering a grovelling spirit. 
He never looked up, and admired the bright blue sky above, 
and the fair fields around him. He looked upon the road as a 
place to pick up money in, as he walked along ! 

A THRILLING NARRATIVE was published in 1857 of the wreck 
of an American steam-vessel, on its way from California to 
]^ew York, with a cargo of five hundred passengers, and the 
treasure they had obtained, said to be worth £2,000,000 
sterling. On their voyage they encountered a tremendous 
storm ; and after a time, a leak being found, the vessel began 
^0 fill, ,when all hope of saving their valuable treasure was 
gone. The scenes that occurred were of the most heart-rend- 
ing description. It was soon felt, how little at such a time 
was the worth of money. Gold became worse than useless, 
and was scattered about without concern. Full purses con- 
taining 2000 dollars were laid on sofas untouched. Carpet- 
bags were opened, and the shining metal was poured upon the 



MONEY. 



183 



floor with, the prodigality of the despair of death. One of 
the passengers, who was subsequently rescued, opened a bag 
and dashed upon the cabin floor £20,000 of gold, and per- 
mitted any one to take it who would. But none came forward. 
There was one exception : the stewardess of the vessel, a negro 
woman, could not resist the impulse of cupidity. She gathered 
a quantity of gold, and buckled it about her body for greater 
safety. The weight proved the cause of her death : she was 
the only one of the women who were lost, though several 
were cast into the sea. 

Given to the Lord. There was a widow woman, not very 
poor, nor very rich. She had two sons, alas ! both wild and 
wicked. One day there was a collection made for a Missionary 
Society, and the mother had saved up £20, and she gave the 
whole to that society. Her sons were very angry, and said, 
You might just as well throw your money into the sea as give 
it to that Missionary Society." She answered, " That is just 
what I have done : I have cast my bread upon the waters ; 
perhaps, I shall find it another day." The two sons were 
exceedingly angry ; they thought they ought to have had 
the £20. As a kind of revenge, they both enlisted in the 
army. Their regiments were soon ordered to India, One of 
the sons was sent far up the Ganges, the other remained at 
Calcutta. The first one was brought into the neighbourhood 
of a missionary, who was very kind to him, and after a while 
the young man became a decided Christian. When his mother 
heard of it (for he wrote to tell her of the change in his heart) 
she exclaimed, ^^Oh, my £20, haven't they come back again 1" 

After the elder brother had become thus changed, he went 
to see his younger brother at Calcutta. They prayed together, 
had much conversation, and it pleased God to change the 
heart of the younger brother also. Soon afterwards the elder 
son died. When the younger one wrote the account of the joy 
he felt in the hope of going to be with Christ, how fervently 
did the dear old mother exclaim, " Oh, my £20, haven't I got 
my £20 back again a hundredfold ! " The younger son after 



184 



MORTALITY. 



a time left the army and became a minister. The mother 
became old and feeble, and lay in bed wifcli the Bible by her 
side. One day there was a knock at her door, and in walked 
lier younger son, dressed as a clergyman, and a clergyman he 
was. There was his mother before him. He took the Bible, 
read to her, and prayed with her. She died shortly afterwards 
in happiness and peace, and before she died, she used to say 
again and again, " Oh, my £20, haven't my £20 come back 
again ! 

MOETALITY. 

Grass. We all know how in Scripture human life is 
compared to grass in its many changes. Now grass is one 
of the things that cannot live long without rain ; therefore 
the grass in Eastern countries does not last all the year 
round, as it does with us ; but only springs up in the rainy 
season, and dries up and disappears in the dry, hot weather, 
just as it begins to do with us in any unusually dry summer. 
With us grass is one of the last things we think could utterly 
fail. It grows readily everywhere. If a piece of cultivated land 
is left to itself, grass and weeds of all kinds will soon grow 
over it. If even a roadway is left untrodden for a few weeks, 
the grass begins to grow. But in Eastern countries — in 
David's country of Judsea — the life of grass is very short and 
uncertain, and it is quickly affected by the changes of the 
seasons; therefore he compares the life of man to it, and bids 
us learn our own littleness from the grass and the flower of 
the field : For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone, and 
the place thereof shall know it no more.'' 

In connection with the parable of the grass, we may re- 
member too how it illustrates the vast variety there is of class 
and character in the great human family. Naturalists tell us 
there are no less than 5000 different kinds of grasses in the 
world ! 

Eesults of Intemperance. Dr. Norman Kerr, in a lecture 
delivered before the Harveian Society in February, 1879, states, 



MORTIFICATION. 



185 



that a few years before, he had commenced an inquiry, wishing 
to demonstrate the falsity of the frequent teetotal statement, 
that 60,000 drunkards die every year in the United Kingdom. 
The result of his investigation was, to compel him to admit 
that at least 120,000 of our population annually are brought 
to the grave through alcoholic excess ; viz. 40,500 dying from 
their own intemperance, and 79,500 from accidents, violence, 
and poverty, or disease arising from the intemperance of 
others. Even this, it is probable, is below the mark : as in 
the registration of deaths, from kindness to friends and other 
reasons, the secondary causes of death are frequently 
registered, though their connection with the primary cause 
of intemperance cannot be doubted. 

The offices for life assurance testify to the greater longev- 
ity of abstainers. The United Kingdom Assurance Company 
gives the death-rate of the general section (including moderate 
drinkers, though excluding drunkards) as fully 17 per cent, 
higher than the abstaining section. 

MOETiriCATIOK 

Strange as it may seem, bodily mortification is often the 
nearest road to cheerfulness. 

There are many persons who profess to be very religious, 
and they tell us that they would not give up their religion 
for anything ; but press them to give up their sins, and you 
soon find they are not willing to part with them. This is 
why a religion like Mahommedanism seems to prosper and 
increase so easily and so much more rapidly than Christianity, 
because a man may be a Mahommedan and not give up his 
sins. 

Labour to carry on the work of mortification every day 
more than you did the day before. It is the sap in the wood 
that makes it hard to burn, and corruption unmortified that 
makes the Christian loth to sufier. Dried wood will not 
kindle sooner than a heart dried and mortified to the lust of the 
world will endure anything for Christ, The Apostle speaks 



186 



MOTHERS. 



of some tliat were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that 
they might obtaia a better resurrection." They did not like 
the world so well, as being so far on their journey to heaven, to 
be willing to come back to live in it any longer. Take heed, 
Christian, of leaving any worldly lust unmortified in thy soul. 
This will never allow you to be living near to Christ. Few ships 
sink in the open sea ; it is the rocks and shelves that split 
them. Couldst thou get off the rocks of pride and unbelief, 
and escape knocking on the sands of the fears of man, love of 
the world, and the like lusts, thou wouldst do well enough 
in the greatest storm that can overtake thee in the sea of this 
world. If a man purge himself from these, he shall be a 
vessel unto honour, sanctified and meet for the Master's use, 
and prepared unto every good work." 

MOTHERS. 

In 1871 there were in England and Wales about four and 
a half millions of wives and mothers. 

Nursing mothers. Bishop Jeremy Taylor observes, that 
it is remarkable, that while several of the Eoman emperors 
killed their mothers, they never killed any of their nurses. 

The three needles — which does most good? The 
compass needle ] We know it has been a wonderful power 
in the world ! What should we do now without if? How 
could we get a pound of tea from the East, or of sugar from 
the West, without its magic aid] The Telegraph needle, 
bringing all the earth now-a-days into such close neighbour- 
hood, almost annihilating distance, and accomplishing in a 
few hours what a century ago took as many months 1 Or 
the mother s needle^ plyiiig its steady and needful work all 
the year round, and working with true motherly love, with 
unwearying toil ] Without undervaluing the benefits obtained 
by the former, the palm may well be given to the mother's 
needle. As it is the most ancient, it is the most universal. 
It represents most the expression of the heart — of a mother s 
heart. 



MOTHEES. 187 

Epitaph. It was tlie inscription on a tombstone in a 
l^eaceful village churchyard — " Slie always made home happy T 

Eenjamin Yv^ est. " That kiss made me a painter," the great 
artist used to say. When a child one of his juvenile works 
Avas placed hefore his mother, and her smile and loving com- 
mendation inspired the beginning of his ambition to excel ! 

Arthur Yandaleur — the bright and sunshiny Christian 
officer ! how much he owed, under God, to his holy mother. 
She died when he was only a boy, but before she died, she took 
from his lips the promise, that so long as he lived he would 
never pass a day without reading a chapter in the Bible with 
prayer, and that in the hour of temptation he would pray to 
the Saviour for grace and strength to resist and overcome. 
With the most sincere determination, he gave the promise, 
and with the most persevering resolution did he observe it to 
the day of his death ; and few lives have been more bright, or 
few deaths more triumphant. 

KiCHARD Cecil, that noble servant of God, used to say, that 
when he was a youth he tried his utmost to be an infidel ; but 
his mother's beautiful and eloquent piety was always too much 
for him. He could never get over that. Sometimes she used 
to talk to him, and weep as she talked. He says, " I flung 
out of the house with an oath, but I wept when I got into 
the street." 

" When shall I begin the education of my child] — when 
four years old % " once asked a mother of a clergyman. 

Madam,*' was the answer, "if you have not begun already 
you have lost those four years. From the first smile that 
gleams upon an infant's cheek, your opportunity began." 

*^One good mother,'' said George Herbert, "is worth a 
hundred schoolmasters. ' ' 

A CONTRAST. A young man, whose disorderly and wicked 
life brought him to an untimely end, when he was about to.' 
suffer the just penalty of the law, desired to speak with his 
aged mother, who had come to the fatal spot to take a last 
look at a son whom she had too fondly indulged. When 



188 MOTHERS. 

slie came near the dying man, lie bitterly reproaclied her for 
her foolish fondness for him in his youth, for allowing him to 
have his own way, and f )r not checking his unruly passions. 

Contrast with this the dying bed of a sweet child, who had 
been trained in the ways of religion by a kind parent, but 
one judiciously firm. As she sank to rest, in peaceful reliance 
on her Saviour's merits and her Saviour's love, she affection- 
ately thanked her beloved mother for all her tender care and 
kindness ; but added — I thank you most of all for having 
subdued my self-will." 

The MAGriE's nest. It is probable that if we were asked to 
choose among the birds one from whom, as mothers, we might 
learn a lesson of wisdom, the magpie would be among the last 
tliought of ; but for all that, tlie magpie has a lesson for us. 
We are told that the nest of this bird is not merely made of 
moss and similarly soft substances, but the framework is very 
strongly constructed of sticks, among which are generally inter- 
woven a number of sharp thorns, so that the nest is nearly as 
unpleasant to the bare hand as a thistle. Moreover, the bird 
has a way of gathering the thorns round the entrance, and no 
hand can be inserted into the nest without danger of many 
wounds. Are mothers as much on their guard against the 
approach of evil into their nurseries 1 " {Woman's Work.) 

A Christian mother placed a Xew Testament in the 
hands of her son, who was just about commencing a seafaring 
life. The lad was thoughtless and careless, and had mixed 
with bad companions. Eut his mother's prayers followed him, 
and although many years passed without her seeing or hearing 
anything of her boy, the loving mother never forgot him at 
the throne of grace. She inquired of all she met who were 
likely to know the whereabouts of her boy, but in vain. 

One day a half -naked sailor-boy knocked at her door to ask 
relief. The sight of a sailor always interested her, and she 
heard his tale. He had seen great perils, and had been 
wrecked several times, but was never so destitute as at one 
time, when himself and " a fine young gentleman were the only 



MOTHERS. 



189 



individuals saved out of a whole ship's crew/* ^^We were 
cast upon a desert island/' he said, " where, after seven days 
and nights, I closed his eyes." And while the tears stole 
down his face, he told how happily his mate had died. He 
said it all came from reading a little book his mother gave 
him when a boy, and which was the only thing he saved. 
" He gave it to me," he added, "just as he was dying, and said, 
' There, Jack, take it and read it, and may God bless you.' " 

" Is all this true ? " asked the trembling, astonished mother. 
" Yes, madam, every word of it." And then drawing from his 
ragged jacket a little book, much battered and time-worn, he 
held it up, exclaiming, " And here's the book." 

The mother seized the Testament, descried her own hand- 
writing, and beheld the name of her son, coupled with her 
own, on the cover. She gazed — she read — she wept — she 
rejoiced. She seemed to hear a voice which said, " Eehold, 
thy son liveth." She had her reward. 

Me. Tuffnell, in the ^ Eeports of Inspectors of Par- 
ochial School Unions in England and Wales,' 1850, says, I 
have been informed, that in a large factory, where many 
children are employed, the managers, before they engage a 
boy, always inquire into the character of the mother : if that 
is satisfactory, they are satisfied. 

The mother's picture. A young woman in Scotland 
left her home, and became a companion of the street-girls of 
Glasgow. Her mother sought her far and wide, but in vain. 
At last she caused her own picture to be hung upon the wall 
of the Midnight Mission-rooms, where abandoned women 
resorted. Many gave the picture a passing glance. One 
lingered by it. It is the same dear face that looked down 
upon me in my childhood. She has not forgotten me, nor cast 
off her sinning daughter, or her picture would not have been 
hung upon these walls.'* The lips seemed to open and say, 
" Come home : I forgive you, and love you still." The poor 
girl sank down, overwhelmed with her feelings. She became 
truly penitent for her sins * and with a heart full of sorrow 



190 



mothers' meetings. 



and shame, returned to her forsaken home, and mother and 
daughter were once again united. 

MOTHERS' MEETINGS 

— are said to have been originated by Mrs. Chadderton. She 
was born at Blackburn in 1820, and when twenty-six, married 
Mr. Chadderton, who was, like herself, a Wesleyan. In 1849 
they settled at Manchester; and in 1851 she commenced the 
plan of mothers' meetings, which have spread since then so 
rapidly through the kingdom, and been the means, through 
God's blessing, of so much good. Mrs. Chadderton went with 
her mothers on their annual excursion in 1881, and took cold, 
from which she died. 

NATIONS 

— (says one) are the outcome of homes, and homes of 
mothers. 

National prosperity. It was the wise observation of 
Luther — " The prosperity of a country depends not on the 
abundance of its revenues, nor on the strength of its fortili- 
cations, nor on the beauty of its public buildings ; but it 
consists in the number of its cultivated citizens, in its men 
of education, enlightenment, and character : here are to be 
found its true interest, its great strength, and its real 
power." 

The eagle. The large number of nations that have taken 
the eagle for their emblem, is a notable index to the spirit 
which has found favour in the world. As in the visions "of 
Daniel, fierce wild beasts represented the four great empires 
of the world (Dan. vii. 3 — 7) ; so, in more modern times, 
nations have chosen the eagle as their national type. 

In ancient times it was set upon the banner of Persia and 
Eome ; later on, Napoleon caused it to spread its black shadow 
over France. It is the national emblem of Eussian despotism ; 
of Austria, Prussia, Poland, Sicily, Spain, Sardinia, and 



NATIONS. 



191 



some of the small governments of Germany. In many of 
these, is the emblem inapt 1 

Infidelity. It is remarkable, that there has never been 
such a thing as continuance of national infidelity in any 
country. Infidelity disintegrates all national character. Take 
Italy. Superstition, or some form of religion, has been the 
swing of the pendulum in Italy from infidelity. A few 
years ago, it was said, every civil officer in Florence was an 
infidel. But the reaction set in; and at the next election, 
every one returned was a Eoman Catholic. 

Banners. The banners of diff'erent nations have all their 
own history. They are associated with many a romantic tale. 
An illustration of this occurred in the island of Cuba during 
the late revolutionary movement there. An American citizen 
was charged with some political ofi'ence. He was tried by 
court-martial, pronounced guilty, and condemned to be shot. 
The American and English consuls united in a protest, but 
in vain. The condemned man was led out to execution. 
A squad of Spanish soldiers was detailed to carry out the 
sentence. They stood with arms presented, ready to fire, 
when the command was given. Just then the two consuls 
stepped forward. They each wrapped the banner of their 
country round the person of the prisoner, and dared the 
power of Spain to violate the sanctity of these blended 
banners. The efiect was successful, the man was set at 
liberty. 

^National character. It would be an interesting study 
to trace the varying characteristics of different nations : how 
the ancient Greeks cultivated the art faculty ; the Eomans 
the principle of justice and power ; the Chinese the quality of 
filial affection ; the Japanese the restraint of temper ; so now 
the English, Scotch, Irish, Erench, Spanish, &c., every 
nation has its prominent and well-developed mark. 

Sympathy. The sympathy often evinced by the people 
of one country for another, whether in joy or in sorrow, is a 
testimony to the common brotherhood of the human race. 



192 



NAVY. 



**One touch of sorrow makes all the world akin." If a great 
calamity occur, — a famine, e.g., in India, or China, how 
generously help is sent by other countries. In the great 
famine in Xorth China in 1877-8, when 9,500,000 or more 
died, the sum of £45,000 was voluntarily collected in 
England to show sympathy and afford help ; so in the 
famine in India. 

In calamities in our country, the whole hody of the people 
feel it if one part is suddenly wounded. In the melancholy 
Hartley coal-mine calamity, whereby 202 men and boys were 
buried alive, £70,000 was at once raised by public subscrip- 
tion for the bereaved families. 

The same spirit is no less manifested, in the national 
admiration of heroic and self-denying greatness, as in the 
national testimonial presented to Miss Florence JN'iglitingale, 
ISroveml)er 29, 1875, for her noble exertions for our sick and 
wounded soldiers in the Crimean war ; or in the national 
expression of obligation in the testimonial presented to Mr. 
Rowland Hill, June 17, 1846, for his obtaining the penny 
post ; and in the pillars and statues erected in honour of 
the great and noble of our land. 

Peter the Great, though a man of such surpassing 
power, was a man of ungovernable j^assions. He was not 
insensible to their evil effect, and was one day heard to 
exclaim, " Alas ! I have reformed my people, but I have not 
been able to reform myself" 

Patriotism. A dying warrior, when he felt life was 
ebbing fast away, called one to place the flag under which 
he had fought, as a pillow under his head, that he might 
even in death let it be known that he died, as he had lived, 
fighting for his country. 

NAYY. 

The first Article of War for the British !N'avy directs, 
that " Divine Service be solemnly, orderly, and reverently 
performed, and the Lord's Day observed.'' In 1879, of the 



NEGLECT. 



193 



251 ships in commission, 71 carried chaplains, according to 
the rule laid down, that a chaplain is only appointed to a 
ship commanded by a post-captain, and carrying upwards of 
200 men. About one-third therefore of the seamen of our 
Royal ^N'avy are without a chaplain. 

Cost. By a Parliamentary return of the expenses of the 
Kavy (excluding the conveyance of troops), the cost of the 
Navy for the last 23 years has ranged from £12^000,000 to 
£9,000,000 a year. The total amount for 1882-3 was 
£11,155,000; the net amount to be voted, £10,483,900. The 
number of seamen was 45,100, and of marines 12,400. 

In an article on The Navies of the World,'' in the * Edin- 
burgh Eeview* for 1881, it is said, "Supposing the chief 
object of our Navy to be the protection of the mercantile 
marine and ocean trade ; — to protect every ton of merchant 
shipping costs annually in France £778; in Russia, £694; 
in Austria, £256 ; in Italy, £187 ; in England, £115. To 
protect every £1000 worth of sea-borne imports and exports 
costs in Russia about £35 I85. ; in Austria, £28 10s. ; 
France £26 166\; Italy, £25 86\ ; Germany, £22 I65. ; 
England, £17 5s. 

NEGLECT. 

Degeneration". People forget that there are two results 
following generally from neglect. There is a principle of de- 
terioration going on in this fallen world. If we don't sow,'' 
they admit, **we can't expect to reap." True; but this only 
represents half the result. If we don't sow, shall we simply 
lose the harvest we might have had ? Will the field continue 
wholly fallow 1 and not rather be filled with all kinds of 
noxious weeds and thistles ] If we neglect a garden plant, a 
natural principle of deterioration comes in, and changes it into 
a worse plant ; so if we neglect the breeding of birds, and of 
©ur domestic animals, they deteriorate. If we neglect the 
education of our children, their minds will not remain idle, 
but the principles and influence of evil will be busy, and make 

o 



194 



NEIGHBOURS. 



up for our neglect. If a man neglects his business, it will 
sink lower and lower, and competition will seize upon his 
custom, and when he would recover it, it is lost. So it is 
as a general rule, physically and morally. But still more 
fearfully if we neglect the "great salvation." Every year of 
neglect and indifference carries us away farther from the path 
of :<alvation. The calls of conscience come less frequently 
and less powerfully, and the calls of the world are of tener and 
louder. Sin has filled the vacant heart ; Satan seized the 
vacant throne. We meant in youtii to begin to seek the 
Lord, but it was neglected ; and in middle life the desire 
was feebler ; and the heart was full of other things. Oh ! 
the sad consequences of neglect ! 

We may lose Heaven by ncutralitij as well as by hostility ; 
by wasting oil as well as ])y drinking poison. An unprotit- 
able servant shall as much be punished as a prodigal son. 
Undone duty will undo our souls. 

" Men who neglect Christ, and tr}^ to win Heaven through 
moralities, are like sailors at sea in a storm, who pull, some 
at the bowsprit, and some at the mainmast, but never touch 
the helm " {Bate). 

NEIGHBOURS. 

**rvE many dwellers-by," once said a poor woman to 
me, **but very few neighbours.'' 

My duty towards my neighbour. It is a point of beauty 
in the moral law, which is followed in our Catechism, that the 
contrast is not made between our duty to God an»d our 
duty towards man, but towards God and towards out- 
neighbour ; as if to remind us of the tie of kindred which 
should bind the whole family of man together. 

NEWSPAPEES. 

The oldest newspaper in the world, is said to be King 
Pau, or " Capital Sheet," published in Pekin. It first 
appeared in a.d. 911, and came out at irregular intervals* 



NEWSPAPERS. 



195 



About 1351 it was first published weekly, and has continued 
so ever since. It has been lately re-organized by Imperial 
decree of the present Emperor of China. It originally 
contained nothing but Orders in Council, and Court news ; 
was published about midday, and cost 2 kesh (about one 
halfpenny). 'Now it appears in three editions, the first being 
called Hoing Pan, or the Business Sheet; the second, 
anciently King Pau, now Sheerin Pau, the Official Sheet ; 
the third Titan Pau, the Country Sheet, for circulation in tho 
provinces. 

The first paper in Britain published at stated intervals, 
for the dissemination of intelligence, was the * Weekly ITewes,' 
the first number of which was published in London, on the 
23rd May, 1622. It was destitute of advertisements, and 
indeed contained very little news. The first advertisement 
appeared on the 2nd April, 1647, in No. 13 of a weekly 
paper called ' Perfect occurences of Every Dale iournall in 
Parliament, and other Moderate Intelligence,' — a name that 
would make our news-boys frantic, and refers to " A book 
applauded by the Clergy of England, called the Diuine Eight 
of Church Government.'' For several years booksellers were 
the only advertisers ; but as the newspapers began to circulate 
more among the less educated classes, other kinds of adver- 
tisements appeared, and the columns gradually assumed a 
more business-like aspect. The ' Mercurius Politicus ' of Sept. 
30, 1658, contained the first trade advertisement, which 
relates the charms of the new drink called by the Chineans 
tcha, by other nations tay alias tee " (All the Yea?' Bound). 

Prom the same book we learn, that in 1846 there were 
published in the United Kingdom 551 journals, now 1962 ; 
showing that the Press of the country has more than trebled 
in the last 37 years. The increase of the daily papers is still 
more remarkable; being 14 in 1846, and 181 in 1883. 
The magazines now in course of publication, including the 
Quarterly Eeviews, number 1311 ; of which 326 are of a 
decidedly religious character, representing the Church of 



196 



NEWSPAPERS. 



England, Wesleyans, Methodists, Baptists, Independents, 
Eoman Catholics, and other Christian communities. 

The * Times,' according to the statistics compiled by Mr. 
Grant some years ago, in one day received no less than £1500 
for advertisements. For special numbers its sale is enormous. 
The biography of Prince Albert sold 90,000 copies ; the 
marriage of the Prince of Wales 111,000. The income of 
the ^ Times,' from advertisements alone, is about .£260,000. 
A writer in the Philadelphian papers in 1817, estimates the 
paper consumed by the * Times ' weekly at 70 tons, and the 
ink at 2 tons. The new Walter Press prints 22,000 to 
24,000 impressions an hour, or 12,000 perfect sheets printed 
on both sides. It prints from a roll of paper three-quarters 
of a mile long, and cuts the sheets, and piles them without 
help. It is a self-feeder, and requires only a man and two 
boys to guide its operations. A copy of the ' Times ' has 
been known to contain 4000 advertisements, and for every 
day's copy it is reckoned that the compositors mass together 
not less than 2,500,000 separate types ! The number of 
persons engaged in daily working for the * Times ' is about 
350. 

From the * Newspaper Press Directory ' for 1883 we learn, 
"There are now published in the United Kingdom 1962 
newspapers : — England, 1530 (London, 386 ; Provinces, 
1444); Wales, 75 ; Scotland, 184; Ireland, 152; Isles, 21. 
Of these, 137 daily papers are published in England ; 4 in 
Wales ; 22 in Scotland ; 16, Ireland ; 2, British Isles." 

Paper. American authorities calculate, that there are in 
the world 3985 paper-mills, producing yearly 950,000 tons 
of paper ; about one half the quantity is printed upon, and of 
these 476,000 tons, about 300,000 are used by newspapers. 
The various Governments consume in official business 100,000 
tons; the schools take 90,000 tons; commerce, 120,000 
tons ; industry, 90,000 tons ; and private correspondence, 
another 90,000 tons. The paper trade employs 192,000 
hands, including women and children " (Church Standard). 



NEW YEAE. 



197 



NEW YEAE. 

A HAPPY NEW YEAR." Well, but WHAT IS the NEW YEAR ? 

when does it begin ? Different nations have begun the year 
at different times, some in spring or autumn, some even in 
summer or in winter. Some have changed their starting-point 
— ^the French, at least, half-a-dozen times. Our present style 
was adopted in Eomanist countries, at the bidding of Pope 
Gregory XIII. in 1583. Here, in England, we did not adopt 
it till 1752. Down to 1752, the historical year in England 
began on January 1, while the civil, ecclesiastical, and legal 
year began on the 25th of March, which led to much confusion 
of dates. In old books we constantly find both referred to, as 
a date written January 30, 1648-9, i.e. 1648 the civil and 
legal year, 1649 the historical year, ^. e, according to our 
present calculation. 

The ancient heathen used to make much of the recurrence 
of !N'ew Year's Day. Some of them said that only good words 
should be spoken on that day, because all things are wrapped 
up in their beginnings, and therefore that day should be the 
beginning of future good. 

The giving of presents has always been a prevailing custom 
over Europe. In Eome, the Emperors made the l!Tew Year's 
presents a very heavy tax upon the people. Among modern 
nations, the French celebrate the day with the most 
profuse extravagance. Smith, in his book on ' Games and 
Festivals,' says, " It is estimated that the amount spent upon 
bonbons and sweetmeats alone in Paris for that day exceeds 
£20,000 sterling ; while the sale of jewellery and fancy articles 
in the first week of the year is computed to be one-fourth of 
the sales during the whole twelve months ! In our own 
country, the fashion rose to the highest pitch in the Tudor 
period, and the last sovereign of that dynasty received from 
her household brilliant etrennes of money, jewels, and wearing 
apparel. 

January takes its name, as is well known, from Janus, to 
whom the Eomans dedicated this season. They represented 



198 



NSW YEAR. 



him with two faces — one, that of an old man looking back 
upon the past; the other, that of a young man looking for- 
ward to the future. He had a key in one hand, and a staff 
in the other — the symbol of his opening and governing the 
year. 

Casting past sins into the sea. A strange scene was 
witnessed by an English visitor at Odessa, on the first day of 
the present Jewish year. Late in the afternoon, a large 
number of the 50,000 or 60,000 Jews living at Odessa went 
down to the sea, for the purpose of throwing the last year's 
sins therein, to begin the New Year with a clear conscience. 
They stood in groups, closely packed together, looking towards 
the water, reciting prayers or reading psalms, or a portion of 
Isaiah. Some of the people turned their pockets inside out 
and shook them towards the sea. Others merely made a sign 
of throwing stones into it. 

Thrift. There is a singular custom still observed in 
Queens' College, Oxford, on New Year's Day, of bringing in 
the Boar's Head into the hall for dinner, and presenting every 
guest with a threaded needle. There are three different 
colours — red for medicine, black for divinity, blue for law. 
The origin is uncertain, but it is supposed to be meant as 
symbolical of thrift for the coming year. 

Only be patient. At the beginning of a Xew Year, it is, 
as one says, as if the good Lord gave each of His people a 
present of a beautiful case with three hundred and sixty- five 
letters in so many drawers, one to be opened every morning, 
with a special message for the day. But we would fain be 
always looking forward, and opening them when we choose. 
Perhaps our birthday is in April, and it is now only January, 
— we should like to get on a little faster, as the time draws 
near. Or, we are looking for some important event to hap- 
pen in September — we are expecting to leave the country, 
or enter upon some new work, and we should very much like 
to see w^hat the letter for that day says ! But God says — Xo, 
be patient— take each day as it comes. Begin every day 



NEW YEAR. 



199 



wiili receiving God's message for the day. Fulfil eacli day's 
duty faithfully, **as to the Lord ; " and leave the rest of the 
year and of your life with Him. 

Three E's. It would make a good motto for a Xew 
Year. — Eememher the three E's. The Christian's obligation, — 
to be more and more Eeceiving — Eesponding — Eeporting. 
Eeceive God's gifts and messages ; Eespond to God's calls ; 
Eeport God's goodness. 

Two QUESTIONS. What has the Old Year taught 1 What 
has the IvTew Year brought ] 

" We stand upon the boundary of a New Year, looking 
along the way on which w^e must go, and wondering whither 
will it lead us What shall we find in this strange country ? 
There are vague guessings and fond hopes ; there are whispered 
fears and strong wishes. But over all lies uncertainty — a 
mist that spreads about the valleys, and creeps half up the 
hillsides, chilling and dismal. Life itself is so frail, and our 
hold upon things that are more than life to us is altogether 
so insecure, and in the past there is so much of failure ; and 
how^ever long our life may be, there is so much less of it left 
to us now, so we look away and fear. 

" Eut here at our right hand is our loving Father. He has 
gone forth all along the way. He arranges ; He provides. 
Eight into my heart there comes the warm, comforting glad- 
ness of the blessed presence. ^ Dear child,' saith He, * have 
I ever failed thee 1 Has the provision ever run short 1 Has 
My guidance ever led thee to a wrong path ] ' Stand upon 
the boundary line, and look back as well as forward. Oh, how 
wisely has He led us all along our way 1 How infinite His 
love has been 1 How bountifully He has dealt with us ! How 
pitiful and patient ! How often He has forgiven, and at what 
infinite cost ! How wonderfully delivered, how graciously 
restored us ! Lo ! He is mine ; and I am His. He leads 
me along the new way. He encompasses me with the wings 
of His love. * The God of my mercy and love prevent me.' 
Surely our grateful faith wakes up with a new song to greet 



200 



OBLIGATION. 



the New Year. * I will fear no evil, for Thou art with 
me."' 

A little lad, during the American War, was his widowed 
mother's comfort and joy. One day, as the poor woman was 
trying to scrape the flour from the sides and bottom of the 
barrel, to help out the day's supply, the lad cried out, 
Mother, we shall have some more very soon, I know." 
" Why do you say so, my boy] '' asked the mother. 
Why, because you've got to scraping the barrel. I believe 
God always hears you scraping the barrel, and that's a sign to 
Him that you want another." And before the day was over, 
the fresh supply had come. We may have come to the 
l)ottom of the barrel. Then look up for more. Brother 1 
have a tremendom faith'' in the providence — the providing 
— of our God. 

(Does the !N'ew Year begin with cares V) One of the 
earliest Arctic explorers, the discoverer of Iceland, is said to 
have carried with him a number of ravens ; and when he 
w^anted to know where the land lay, he would loose one of 
the birds, and then follow tlie direction of its fliglit. A 
right good use for our croaking cares : let them fly away to 
the Lord, and let us follow them until we rest in Him " {Mark 
Guy Pearse). 

OBLIGATIOK 

Most persons acknowledge their obligation. They say, 
'^Yes, I know I should do so;" but they spoil it by adding, 
''And I will hij and ly:' 

In proportion as we hold responsible posts, the neglect of 
duty is so much the greater. A lighthouse-keeper neglecting 
to light the lamps incurs the greater condemnation, because 
he is in a measure risking the property and lives of his 
fellow-creatures. 

Because men are sinful they do not cease to be God's 
creatures. Neglect does not release from accountability. 

Ought " is an important word, but used in different 



OBSERVATION. 



201 



senses. " You ought says one, " to see my roses ; they are 
so beautiful/' — there is the thought of pleasure. " You ought 

to sell that old silver to Mr. A ; he gives the best price 

of any one," — there is the thought of profit. " You ought, my 
dear boy, to speak more respectfully to your father," — there 
is the charge of duty. " You ought not to lose a post with- 
out writing to secure your place," — there is the thought of 
interest. Eut when we say to the unchanged sinner, *^ You 
ought at once to turn to Christ^'' — all these, and more than 
these, are involved in the force of the imperative obligation. 

OBSEEYATIOK 

" The difference between me a consists in a great measure 
in the intelligence of their observation. The Russian proverb 
says of the non-observant man, " He goes through the forest, 
and sees no firewood'* (Smiles), 

Galileo. Many," says the same writer, " before Galileo, 
had seen a suspended weight swing before their eyes with a 
measured beat ; but he was the first to detect the value of the 
fact. One of the vergers in the cathedral at Pisa, after 
replenishing with oil a lamp which hung from a roof, left it 
swinging to and fro ; and Galileo, then a youth of eighteen, 
noting it attentively, there conceived the idea of applying it 
to the measurement of time. Fifty years of study and labour 
elapsed before he completed the invention of his pendulum — 
an invention, the importance of which, in the measurement of 
time,, and in astronomical calculation, can scarcely be over- 
estimated. In like manner, Galileo, observing the magnifying 
effect produced by two of a spectacle-maker's glasses accident- 
ally placed together, was led to the invention of the telescope, 
which was the beginning of astronomical discovery/* 

While Captain (afterwards Sir Samuel) Brown was 
occupied in studying the construction of bridges, with the 
view of contriving one of a cheap description to be thrown 
across the Tweed, near which he lived, he was walking in his 
garden one dewy autumnal morning ; his attention was 



202 



OLD AGE. 



arrested by a tiny spider s web, suspended across his path. 
The idea occurred to him. that a bridge of iron ropes or chains 
might be constructed on the same principle, and the result 
was the invention of his Suspension Bridge. 

Mr. Smiles gives many other examples in the chapter on 
Helps and Opportunities" in his * Self Help,' commending 
the habit of unwearying industry and patient observation. 
" Accident," he says, " does very little towards the production 
of any great result in life, though sometimes what is called 
* a happy hit ' may be made by a bold venture. The old and 
common highway of steady industry and application is the 
only safe way to travel.'* 

Sir I. Brunel took his first lesson in forming the Thames 
Tunnel from the tiny shipworm ; Galvani, of the wonderful 
action of electricity, from observing the twitching of a frog's 
leg. Stothard learnt the art of combining colours by closely 
studying butterflies' wings, &c. 

OLD AGE. 

Never too late to learn. It is surprising how many 
of our great scholars have been late learners. Sir Henry 
Spelman did not begin the study of science till he was between 
fifty and sixty years of age. Franklin was fifty before he 
entered upon the study of natural philosophy. Dr. Arnold 
learned German at fifty, to be able to read Niebuhr in the 
original James Watt, when about the same age, working at 
his trade as an instrument-maker in Glasgow, learnt French, 
German, and Italian, to enable him to read the valuable 
books in those languages on mechanical philosophy. Handel 
was forty-eight before he published any of his greatest works. 
Brindley and Stephenson did not learn to read and write 
until they reached manhood. 

Alas ! the oldest sometimes never do learn. John 
"Wesley wrote of the landlord of Okehampton, that he was 
upwards of ninety, having lost neither sight, nor hearing, nor 
teeth ; and yet he had not the most dim conception of that for 



OLD AGE. 



203 



which he had been horn, not more than a child of six years 
old ! Alas ! no uncommon case. 

" But thou remainest." The Eev. G. Everard, writing 
in * Home AVords/ tells how once his heart was moved in 
seeing the above words over the bookshelves, in the study of 
the Eev. Thomas Yores of Hastings. It was in the time of 
his old age, when his work was done, and he was the prisoner 
of a sick chamber. During some years before, one by one of 
those dear to him had passed away. A beloved wife had 
been laid in the grave. A true and faithful fellow- worker, 
once a bishop in a colonial diocese, had also been called to 
rest from his earthly toil. Others, who had worked with him, 
had one by one been taken away. And now he was alone, 
though yet not alone. This text stood before him as a re- 
minder of God's presence and faithfulness to the end — " But 
thou remainest ; and in that he was able to find a staff stronG^ 
enough to bear his weight, as he came near the end of life's 
pilgrimage. 

Hope in the end. A clergyman (the Eev. J. W. G — — ) 

was in his earlier years incumbent of a church near Hudders- 
field. When there, a farmer came to live in the parish, and 
brought with him his grandmother. Being of a great age, 
the journey was almost too much for her strength. Imme- 
diately on reaching their new home, she was taken very ill, 
and appeared to be dying. Mr. G. was sent for. He found 
her to the last degree dark and ignorant, and without the 
least concern for her present and future state. She told him 
she had lived a careless, thoughtless life ; never been to 
church or chapel except once or twice in her early days, to 
make fun " of the " Methodists." He spoke to her most 
solemnly, and on leaving, with the deepest earnestness, asked 
her to say a short prayer for herself, the words of which he 
repeated to her slowly and solemnly. JSText day he called, 
and inquired if she had said the prayer. She replied, in the 
same careless manner, " Xo ; I never even thought of it." 
What could he do 1 For three weeks he continued to visit 



204 



OPPORTUNITIES. 



her regularly, never missing a single day except Sundays. At 
the end of that time she was as hard as at the first, ^^othing 
seemed able to make the least impression upon her deadened 
conscience. Still the earnest pastor would not be discouraged. 
He made it a matter of most serious self-inquiry, " Am I 
taking the right course in dealing with such a case " and of 
earnest prayer that what no human words could do, the Spirit 
of God, with whom is all power, would be pleased to do. At 
last, when pleading thus earnestly in prayer, a voice seemed 
to sound in his ears, " You've told her of the wrath of God, 
now tell her of the love of God; and^ before you tell her, 
feel it deeply for yourself.'' He went once more to the 
cottage ; it was at the end of a pleasant country lane. For 
half an hour he walked up and down that lane, meditating 
on the wondrous love of God to sinners, and God's mercy 
even to the most hopeless. Then, with his heart filled with 
holy warmth, he knocked at the door, went in, and poured 
out the " old, old story " to the hardened sinner. Tears 
filled his loving eyes, the fire was kindled as he spoke, and, 
better still, not from his eyes alone. For the first time a sign 
of feeling became visible, a tear dropped from the old woman's 
eye, and words came that showed the seed had not been lost. 

Well, sir," she said, I see I've been a hardened old sinner, 
but if I perish, I'll perish at His feet ! " From that moment 
the change went on, light burst in upon her mind, and after 
a while she died, rejoicing in Him who is '*able to save to 
the uttermost all who come unto Him " by faith ; and her 
words were to the last the same, I've been a hardened old 
sinner, but if I perish, I'll perish, at His feet." 

OPPOETUMTIES. 

A Christian should be like the sea, always ready to enter 
any little creek, wherever found. It would be difficult to find 
any religious society a better example of embracing oppor- 
tunities than the great British and Foreign Bible Society. 
Whenever any event occurs of national or general interest, it 



OPPORTUNITIES. 



205 



is ever found stepping forward like a true friend, holding in 
its hand the Word of Life. When the Act was passed for the 
Emancipation of Slaves in America, at Lord Shaftesbury's 
wise suggestion, the Bible Society presented every emancipated 
slave with a copy of the Word, which tells of the truest and 
most blessed liberty. When the vast empire of China was 
more fully opened to our commerce, at the suggestion of the 
Eev. J. A. James, a plan of sending a million copies of the 
'New Testament out to China was set on foot. When the 
Crimean war broke out, the Bible Society sent out 250,000 
Bibles for the soldiers and those engaged at the seat of war. 
So in the time of the Lancashire famine, it brought food to 
many a hungering heart. At home, in every likely place, it 
scatters its gifts with a free and liberal hand — in institutions 
for the blind, the deaf and dumb, widows, orphans, &c. It 
places the Book in prisons, union-houses, hospitals, infirm- 
aries, asylums, hotels, boarding-houses^ police and railway 
stations. In every possible way does it watch for the oppor- 
tunity to dispense its bounty — in season, out of season." 
What an example to all Christian workers ! and who could 
imagine the blessing which must have followed ? 

Making use of opportunities. " Your husband must be 
an exceedingly clever man," was the remark made to a lady, 
whose husband had accomplished a wonderful work, and been 
made a blessing to many. " No," was the wife's answer ; he 
is not cleverer than many other men. But the difference 
between him and all other people I have ever known is this — 
he makes use of all his opportunities, Ah, if only we all did 
the same ! 

Napoleon used to say, " Every moment lost gives an oppor- 
tunity for misfortune. I beat the Austrians because they did 
not know the value of time ; while they dawdled, I overthrew 
them.'* 

Lost through delay. It was my lot," said the captain of 
a ship, to sail in company with that ill-fated steamer, the 
Central America, The night was closing in, the sea rolling 



206 



OPPOSITION. 



high, but I hailed the crippled steamer, and asked if they 
needed help. *I am in a sinking condition ! ' cried Captain 
Herndon. * Had you not better send your passengers on board 
directly ? ' I said. ' Will you not lie by me till morning ? ' 
answered Captain Herndon. * I will try/ I replied ; ' but had 
you not better send your passengers on board now 1 ' * Lie 
by me till morning/ again said Captain Herndon. I tried to 
lie by him ; but at night, such was the heavy roll of the sea, 
I could not keep my position, and I never saw the steamer 
more. In an hour and a half after the captain said, * Lie by 
me till morning/ the vessel with its living freight went down, 
and the captain and crew, and a great majority of his 
passengers, found a grave in the great deep. But for this 
delay all might have been saved." 

— WAIT FOR THEM. An old Carpenter on Salisbury Plain 
once reproved a young Christian, who complained that he was 
unworthy to serve the Lord. I used," he said, to think as 
you do, but the Lord taught me by a crooked stick ! One day 
my son went to a sale of timber, and in the lot he bought, was 
a piece so twisted and bent, that he said sharply, * That will 
be of no use.' * Wait a bit,' said I ; * don't throw it away. Lay 
it aside ; there may be a place for it some day.' Soon after I 
was building a house. There was a corner to turn in it, that not 
a stick in the yard would fit. I thought of the crooked stick, 
and fetched it. It seemed as if the tree had grown for the 
very purpose ; it exactly fitted. Then said I, * There is a place 
for the crooked stick, and there is a place for me.' " 

OPPOSITIOK 

A certain amount of opposition is a great help to a man. 
Kites rise against the wind. Even a head wind is better than 
none, l^o man ever worked his passage in a dead calm. Let 
no man, therefore, wax pale because of opposition. 

OEDER 

Martin Luther, as all w^ell know, had a life of constant 
harass and trials ; yet he was a singularly happy man. He 



ORDEE. 



207 



j)erformGd Lis work easily too. He got througli a vast deal 
of it comfortably by doing it *^one tbing at a time." In 
addition to bis otber work, be wrote some bundred volumes 
during his life. Without systematic labour it would have 
been impossible to accomplish such herculean work and 
enjoy it as he did. 

John Wesley resembled Luther in this respect. He was 
travelling and preaching much of his time, and yet by his 
orderly way of working he found time to write thirty- two 
octavo volumes before he was seventy years of age. He was 
an easy toiler, and a happy one. No undue haste, no friction, 
no irritability, no fretfulness, ever marred the symmetry of 
his daily living. 

An orderly farm. " Eecently we read of a valuable farm 
under the control of tbe following rules, which were printed, 
framed, and hung up in a conspicuous place, where the farm 
hands could see them daily, if not hourly : — 

1. Perform every operation in the proper season. 

2. Perform every operation in the best manner. 

3. Complete every part of an operation as you proceed. 

4. Finish one job before you begin another. 

5. Secure your work and tools in an orderly manner. 

6. Clean every tool when you leave off work. 

7. Return every tool and implement to its place at 
night." 

It need not be added, a farm under such arrangements 
was carried on with the greatest amount of satisfaction and 
comfort, both to the employer and employed. 

The analogy of the faith. " There is a great difference 
between the sight of the several parts of a clock or watch 
as they are disjointed and scattered abroad, and the seeing 
them conjoin ted, and in use and motion. To see here a pin, 
and there a wheel, and not know how to set them all 
together, nor even set them in their due places, will give but 
little satisfaction. It is the frame and design of holy doctrine 



208 



ORDINANCES. 



that must be known, and every part should be discerned, as 
it hath its particular use to that design, and as it is connected 
with the other parts (Flavel). 

OEDINANCES 

— are the Christian's breathing-times ; the deep channels 
for the water of life ; golden pipes ; the green pastures and 
still waters of the good Shepherd's fold ; God's table in the 
wilderness ; the wings of our eartli-born spirits ; chinks 
through which the liglit of the upper sanctuary shines ; the 
lattice- work of the King's palace." 

When a man goes tliirsty to the well, his thirst is not 
allayed merely by going there. On the contrary, it is in- 
creased by every step he goes. It is by what he draws out 
of the well that his thirst is satisfied. And just so it is not 
by the mere bodily exercise of waiting upon ordinances that 
you will ever come to peace, but by tasting of Jesus in the 
ordinances, whose flesh is meat indeed, and His blood drink 
indeed" {McClieyne), 

Profit. A traveller and a merchant differ thus : a 
traveller goes from place to place to be amused ; but a mer- 
chant goes from port to port that he may take in his lading, 
and grow rich by trade. So a formal person goes from ordi- 
nance to ordinance, and is satisfied with the work ; but a godly 
man looks to take in rich lading, that he may go away and 
take with him some of the spiritual wealth of the Sanctuary " 
{Spencer), 

PAIK 

Much of the most useful work, and many of the most 
"Qseful men the world has known, has been linked with 
physical weakness, if not with pain and suffering. As Shelley 
says of the poets, — '*They learn in suffering what they teach 
in song." " What is if (asks Sir A. Helps) ^'that promotes 
the most and the deepest thought in the human race ? It is 
not learning ; it is nat the conduct of business ; it is not 



PAEDON. 



209 



even the impulse of the afifections. It is suffering ; and tliat 
perhaps is the reason why there is so much suffering in the 
world. The angel who went down to trouble the waters, 
and to make them healing, was not perhaps entrusted with 
so great a boon as the angel who benevolently inflicted upon 
the sufferers the disease from which they suffered." 

!N"o SUFFERING need be only suffering. 

Pain, like a cunning sculptor, and suffering, are working 
slowly on the marble of our fallen humanity, bringing out in 
the hand of the designer the image of moral and spiritual 
perfection. Oh, how the angels must look and gaze, as they 
watch it coming out with increasing clearness and" distinct- 
ness, and how we shall ourselves bless the kind hand that 
took the chisel, when we see and acknowledge how it has 
made us like unto Him ! 

PAEDOK 

God never forgives by halves. 

One of the great mistakes worldly men often make is, 
confounding reprieve with 'pardon. When judgment is 
delayed, they think it pardon. But what should we think 
of a spared criminal who would maintain, because he was 
spared, that he was set at liberty ! 

Gratuitous. It is remarkable," says Archbishop Whately, 
^^that the words in all European languages that express 
forgiveness and pardon, all imply free gift." 

— Even for the worst. A very wicked man in Wolver- 
hampton, when he came to die, was so overwhelmed at the 
thought of his past wickedness, that he felt it was too great 
to be forgiven. A Christian man who came to see him, 
assured him that to the very vilest sinner, on repentance and 
faith, there is pardon promised ; but the words seemed to have 
no effect. I've been such a sinner," the man would still 
say, "that I don't think God Almighty can forgive me." 
^*Yery well," replied the visitor, 'Hhen you can do some- 
thing greater than God. If your sin is greater than His * 

P 



210 



PAEDON". 



mercy, you must "be greater than God." Tliis thought first 
comforted the unhappy man ; and he was led to see that 
there is forgiveness promised even to the worst of sinners. 
) Losing the burden. The well-known illustration of 
the Pilgrim's Progress " is perpetuated on Bunyan's tomb. 

JSTot long since," said one, I visited the tomb of Bunyan, in 
Bunhill Fields' Cemetery. There, on the top, is his recum- 
bent figure carved in stone, while on either side are the repre- 
sentations of Christian and his burden. One pictures him 
bowed down beneath it, and the other losing it before the 
Cross. At the foot is the simple record of Bunyan's death — 
* August 31st, 1688 : aged sixty.' " 

Liberty to the captive. Mr. Fleming, in his * Fulfilling 
of the Scriptures,' mentions the case of a man who had been 
not only a notorious and abandoned sinner, but also so stupid 
and brutish that he Avas looked upon as almost beyond the 
reach of any means of gi-ace. But when waiting the execution 
of the sentence of death in the prison of Ayr, Scotland, 
the Spirit wrought a wonderful change in his heart. This 
was followed by such a sweet sense of pardon, that when he 
came to the scaffold he could not cease crying to the people, 
Oh, He is a Great Forgiver ! He is a Great Forgiver ! " and 
he added the remarkable words, " 'Now hath perfect love cast 
out fear. I know God hath nothing to lay against me, for 
Jesus Christ hath paid all, and those are free whom the Son 
makes free." 

When the Rev. Henry Blunt was dying, the doctor said to 
him, " Sir, you are drawing near the grave, and I think, if 
you have any accounts to settle, you had better settle them." 
Mr. Blunt replied, I have no accounts to settle; I owe nothing 
to man, and my Saviour has paid all my debts to God,^' 
■> A French criminal. There was a notoriously wicked 
man taken and confined in one of the prisons in France. 
He was asked of what religion he was. The reply was, None. 
No chaplain or clergyman therefore went near him. It was 
a very sad case ; they did not know what to do. A Scripture- 



PAEDON. 



211 



reader at last came forward, who was labouring in that 
locality, and having heard of the man, asked permission to try. 
Leave was given him, but he was advised not to enter the cell, 
as the man was dangerous. The Scripture-reader took his Bible 
in his hand, and stayed outside the door, reading aloud very 
slowly a part of Eomans iv. When he came to the words, 
To — him — that — worketh not, — but — belie veth — on Him 
— that — ^justifieth — the — ungodly," a rough voice called out — 
" That's not in the Book." Yes, it is," was the answer. I 
won't believe it, unless I see it with mine eyes." The man at 
once went into the cell, and showed the words. Then," said 
the criminal, there's hope for me. I thought God was only 
a God for good, decent kind of people, and He didn't care for 
such a wretch as I am ! But if that be in the Book, then 
there must be hope." From that time he became a changed 
man ; and at last, when the day came for his execution, he 
went to the last scene of his earthly life with a firm hope, 
that though he suffered the just penalty of human law, 
he was delivered from the condemning power of the law 
of God. 

Its quickening power. An artisan in the service of a 
rich Eastern master, by some imprudence got into an immense 
debt with an unmerciful creditor, who told him that unless 
he settled accounts before the close of the year, he and his 
family should be sold as slaves. It was impossible for the 
poor man to pay the debt ; he might quite as well have tried 
to build up a tower like that of Babel in one night. Mean- 
while, his master noticed that His work was falling off every 
week. One day he spoke about this to his steward. Why, 
sir," the steward replied, that poor fellow cannot possibly 
make good work. He cannot manage his tools, for his hands 
tremble ; nor can he see well what he is doing, for his eyes 
are often filled with tears. He often sits down as in despair, 
and sighs heavily ; and sometimes he makes himself drunk to 
forget his misery. A heavy debt is pressing upon him, sir ; 
and until that is paid, he will not be able to make one good 

p 2 



212 



PARENTS. 



piece of work." Tell him, then, that I have paid his debt/' 
the generous master said. The steward went up to the servant, 
and delivered the message. Picture to yourselves the joy of 
that poor man ! From that moment fresh vigour was poured 
into his veins. His hands trembled no more, nor were his 
eyes dimmed with tears ; he swung his hammer with a will, 
so that it was a pleasure to see him ; his little dwelling rang 
with his merry songs, and he made his work even quicker and 
better than ever before. 

PAEEOTS. 

No ONE is a right-minded parent who is not willing to 
make sacrifices for their children; and that not for the return 
of love, which is a kind of subtle selhshness, but for the 
good of the children themselves. 

The parent's life is the child's copybook. 

Mother's truth, says an old saying, keeps constant youth. 

EiCHARD Baxter used to say, " I do verily believe, that if 
parents did their duty as they ought, the word publicly 
preaclied would not be the ordinary means of regeneration in 
the Church." 

The first affecting thought to me, says Dr. Spring, on the 
death of my parents, was, the loss of their prayers. 

**I'm following." Some time ago a gentleman was 
travelling in Switzerland, and was climbing up the rugged 
height of some glacier, and was cutting out footsteps for him- 
self to climb by. He was doing it leisurely, when a voice from 
below called, '^Father, mind you cut out an easy path, for I 
am following you." It was the voice of his child, and 
the simple words reminded the man that he was a father. 
A voice within his own breast, applied the words to parental 
obligations in more serious matters. 

The April of childhood. ^'Be very vigilant over thy 
child in the April of his understanding, lest the frosts of May 
nip his blossoms ; while he is a tender twig, straighten him ; 
whilst he is a new vessel, season him; such as thou makest 



PARENTS. 



213 



him, such commonly shalt thon find him. Let his first lesson 
be obedience, and his second shall be what thou wilt. Give 
him education in good letters, to the utmost of thy ability 
and his capacity. Season his youth with the love of his 
Creator, and make the fear of his God the beginning of his 
knowledge. If he have an active spirit, rather rectify than 
curb it, but reckon idleness among his chiefest faults. 
As his judgment ripens, observe his inclination, and tender 
him a calling that shall not cross it. Forced marriages and 
callings seldom prosper. Show him both the mow and the 
plough; and prepare him as well for the danger of the 
skirmish as possess him with the honour of the prize " 
(Quarles), 

Answered prayer. At a meeting in London for special 
prayer for the children of Christian parents," the Eev. Marcus 
Rainsford delivered an address on ^' The Encouragement to 
Parental Prayer.'' In the course of his address, he related the 
following circumstance, which happened in Ireland. At a 
meeting for united prayer, an aged gentleman was pleading 
very earnestly for his own son, an abandoned prodigal 
While in the act of prayer, a drunken brawl was heard 
outside, which occasioned a temporary interruption of the 
service. After the audience had dispersed, and the minister 
of the chapel was alone in the vestry, a stranger knocked 
at the door. On being admitted he asked for advice and 
prayer, saying, that in company with six riotous companions 
he was passing the church, when his attention was attracted 
by a loud voice within, and after listening awhile, he 
exclaimed with an oath, There's my old father preaching." 
Presently he heard an earnest prayer for himself. Even in 
the midst of his drunken revelry, the arrows of conviction 
pierced his heart. He quitted his companions, and now came 
to seek the minister's aid, exclaiming, " My mother's prayers 
of long ago are answered, as well as that prayer of my father." 
Under God's blessing, this young man became a converted 
man. 



214 



PATIENCE. 



PATIEXCE. 

Abanzit, the natural pliilosoplier, while residing at Geneva^ 
liad one of the most severe trials of patience which could well 
befall any man. Amongst other things, he devoted much 
time to the barometer and its variations. During twenty- 
seven years he made numerous observations daily, recording 
them on sheets prepared for the purpose. One day, when a 
new servant was installed in the house, she began by putting 
things to rights." Abanzit's study, amongst other rooms, was 
" made tidy." When he entered it, he asked, " What have 
you done with the paper that was round the barometer ] " 

Oh, sir," was the reply, " it was so dirty, I burned it, and 
put the clean one in its place.'* Abanzit crossed his arms, 
and after some moments of internal struggle, said, in a tone 
of calmness and resignation, " You have destroyed the results 
of twenty-seven years' labour ; in future touch nothing what- 
ever in this room." 

Oh, impatient ones," writes Beecher, " did the leaves say 
nothing to you as they murmured, when you came hither to- 
day ] They were not created this spring, but months ago, 
and the summer just begun will fashion others for another 
year. At the bottom of every leaf-stem is a cradle, and in 
it is an infant germ ; and the wind w411 rock it, and the 
birds will sing to it all summer long ; and next season it will 
unfold. So God's working for you, and carrying forw^ard to 
the perfect development all the processes of your lives." 

To LIGHTEN OUR BURDENS. Two girls were on the road 
to a large town. It was fair-time, and they had each to 
carry a heavy basket full of fruit on their heads. One girl 
was heard to groan and grumble all the way ; the other was 
happy and merry. '^Bridget," said one, " how can you sing 
and be merry 1 your basket is just as heavy as mine, and you 
are not stronger than I am." But Bridget said, have a 
secret, by which I put something into my load, which makes 
it so light that I can scarcely feel it." Ah," said her com- 
panion, and what can that be ] I wish I had your secret, 



PEACE. 



215 



to make my basket lighter ; do tell me what it is." " It is a 
thing of great price which I have put in my load, but it 
cannot be bought. I call it Patience 

PEACE. 

Great peace and great crosses generally alternate. 

We must live by faith if we would live in peace. 

False peace is pleasant for a time, it may be, as the bark 
of our confidence is drifted leisurely down the stream ; but 
when it comes to the rapids we must expect the crash ! 

iN'oTHiNG can give peace to him who is at enmity with his 
own conscience. 

The great reason why peace is such a blessing is because 
it puts the soul in a right state to receive other blessings. 
As in a nation, when trade increases, and manufactures are 
extended, more persons marry and are happy than in times 
of war; so it is with individual souls. You cannot fill a 
vessel that is not held still. 

Ealse peace. There are various kinds of peace which 
may serve, by way of contrast, to illustrate true Christian 
peace. ^' There is peace," says the Rev. F. W. Eobertson, 
" for example, in the man who lives and enjoys himself, with 
no noble aspiration urging him on to gain the rest of God : 
that is peace, but it is merely the peace of toil. There is 
peace upon the surface of the caverned lake, which no wind 
can stir : but that is the peace of stagnation. There is peace 
among the stones which have fallen and rolled down the 
mountain's side, and lie there quietly at rest : but that is the 
peace of ruin and decay. There is peace in the hearts of 
enemies, who lie together side by side in the same trench of 
the battle-field ; the animosities of their souls are silenced at 
last, and their hands are no longer clenched in deadly enmity 
against each other : but that is the peace of death. But oh ! 
how different is the peace of the Christian ! It is not the 
peace of exhaustion, nor the peace of satisfied sensualism, 
nor the peace of mental torpor and inaction, nor the peace of 



216 



PEACE. 



apathy, nor the peace of death ; no— it is the peace which 
attends pardon, and renewal, and consecration, and activity, 
and life, in its fullest and most perfect plan/' 

Amnesty. An incident in Grecian history may illustrate 
the peace of reconciliation. Thrasyhulus was one of the 
chief men of Athens, about the year 400 B.C. He came to 
the head of affairs after many political changes, which had 
left behind them great bitterness of feeling. To prevent the 
existence of heart-burnings, and to secure peace among the 
Athenians, Thrasybulus exerted his influence to secure the 
passage of a law which they called amnestia, from the Greek 
word signifying, no recollection, or no memory, and from which 
our word amnesty comes. The law provided that all former 
wrongs should be forgotten, and the people pledged them- 
selves henceforward to live lovingly and peaceably towards 
each other, and as if all the wrongs and offences of the past 
had never taken place. 

The sweetness of peace. The true peace the Christian 
enjoys is a peace not only on the brow, but in the breast; 
not only in the looks, but in the conscience. It is a silent 
calmness, a holy quietness ; yes, even in the remembrance of 
wasted years. " It is a holy boldness before God and man. 
It is a healed conscience, though aware of its guilt. It is 
an assurance of victory, even in full view of all the world, 
the devil, or death, or judgment can do to alarm the soul. 
This peace is a blessing greater than all other blessings. 
Philosophy cannot bestow it, for it cannot cleanse from sin. 
Good works cannot secure it, for they cannot justify. Search 
through every mine of earth ; shake every tree that grows upon 
its surface; open every door the world can present; yet 
peace like that of which we speak cannot be found" 
{Dr. Neioton). 

— AND HAPPINESS. How different is peace from happiness. 
Happiness is the result of harmony between our w^ants as 
creatui'es and the world without; peace is the harmony 
between us as spiritual beings and the Father of our spirits. 



PEACE. 



217 



The one is as changeable as the objects or circumstances on 
which it for the moment relies ; the other is as unchangeable 
as the God on whom it eternally rests. We may thus possess 
at once real happiness and real peace ; yet either may exist 
without the other. Nay, more : happiness may be destroyed 
by God, in order that the higher blessing of peace may be 
possessed; but never will He take away peace to give 
happiness. Happiness without peace is temporal; but peace 
along with happiness is eternal (Z)r. Norman Macleod), 

^' A YOUNG GIRL of Seventeen was sent from home to a school 
where she had many privileges. She worked hard at her 
lessons, doing in one year more than many girls in three. 
At this time her heart was touched by God's Spirit. After 
weeks of prayer and earnest inquiry, she gave herself un- 
reservedly to the Saviour, and found great peace of mind. 
The next year she was laid low with an attack on the brain. 
Her life, so full of promise, seemed ebbing away ; but the 
danger passed. Health was gradually restored. But what 
was the cause ] It was due, under God, to the quiet, deep, 
calm peace which possessed her heart. Her medical adviser 
stated, that had there been the slightest mental struggle or 
fear, it must have been fatal to life or reason. She had given 
herself unreservedly to Christ, and she had a blessed reward. 
She had * perfect peace ' in the hour of danger ; and this, in 
God's hand, was the means of her recovery" {Rev. G. 
Everard). 

The bird in the church. One warm Sabbath morning, 
the doors of a church were open. During the progress of the 
service a bird entered, and flew up to the vaulted roof, and 
tried with every effort it could to make its escape. There 
sat, in one of the pews, a woman who had been under deep 
conviction of sin, and had for months been seeking peace 
of mind without finding it. Her eye was attracted by the 
bird. She watched it fluttering from window to window, 
across the roof, and back again to the window, and the 
thought came to her mind, " Oh, foolish bird, why strive 



218 



PEACEMAKERS. 



to get out there 1 Is not the door wide open 1 " Still it 
pursued the same course, till, when its wings were weary, and 
all hope of escape seemed to he ahandoned, it lowered itself 
into the body of the church, saw the open door, and was out 
in a moment, singing a song of praise over its release, and 
resting on the branches of a tree. 

When the bird was gone, the thoughts of this woman turned 
to her own state of mind. I have been acting," she thought, 
*\just like that foolish bird. I have been seeking escape in 
ways in which it is not to be found. Yet how simple is 
the way of finding what I want through Christ, had I but 
seen it." The thought brought thus so simply to her mind 
led her to turn her faith directly to Christ, and she soon 
entered into peace in believing. And whilst the bird was 
making melody in the tree over its escape, she commenced 
making melody in her heart unto the Lord for His mercy 
to her. 

PEACEMAKERS. 

" It would be very desirable," says Buck, " to follow the 
example of the excellent Dr. Cotton Mather, who formed a 
society of peacemakers, whose professed business it was to 
compose diiferences and prevent lawsuits. It was his laudable 
ambition to be able to say he did not know of any person in 
the world who had done him any ill-office, but he had done 
him a good one for it. The Greeks had their djui rjcTTLa, where- 
by they took an order that all old wrongs and injuries should 
be buried and forgotten amongst them. The primitive 
Christians had their agapes (love-feasts) for the like purpose. 
In this, therefore, let us set good examples in our own lives, 
lest it be objected to us as it was to Philip, who, offering him- 
self as umpire to another nation, was desired to make peace 
at home first, settle his own state and family better, and then 
he would be able to manage others" 

Two PERSOXS came to a clergymaa to have a dispute settled, 
each believing the other to be in the wrong. He heard the 



PERSECUTION. 



219 



disputants quietly, and tlien said, " Let the innocent forgive 
the guilty." 

A LADY STOPPING A FIGHT. — Ml. Stoughton Said : I was 
greatly struck by a story told me by a lady who has been 
working for many years in Gospel Temperance work. She 
was going along the street one day with her husband, when she 
saw two men fighting. She went up to them and asked them 
to desist. They did so. Then she said, ' Are you going to stop 
in the town ^ ^ JSTo,' they said ; * we are going away at six 
o'clock.' It was then four o'clock. She said, ' Come to my 
house and have tea ! ' They looked surprised, but after a 
little hesitation accepted the invitation. They went with 
her, had tea, and then the lady said, ' Perhaps you would 
like to hear me sing something 1 ' They said, ' Yes, we 
should,' and on her asking them what they would like, 
they proposed a public-house song. The lady had much 
visited the public-houses, and knowing the song, she sang it, 
there being nothing in the least morally objectionable in it. 

* Now,' said the lady, ' I have sung something to please you, 
and I want to sing something to please myself.' She then 
sang one of Mr. Sankey's solos, and the men were melted 
to tears. She next spoke to them about their souls, and 
having seen them off at the station, made earnest prayer for 
their conversion to Christ. About two years afterwards, the 
lady was speaking in a mission-hall in the same town, and 
when the meeting was over a man came up to her and said, 

* Don't you remember me ] ' She said, ^ ISTo, I haven't any 
knowledge of you.' He said, ^ Don't you remember stopping 
me and another man fighting ' The lady then remembered 
the circumstance. He said, ' What you then said and did 
was the means of my conversion. I am now working for the 
Lord.'" 

PEESECUTIOK 

A YOUNG WORKMAN in the Black Country was converted 
to God, and was in consequence subjected to great persecution 



220 



PERSEVERANCE. 



from those wlio were employed with him in the forge. One 
day he was stripped naked, and placed in front of one of tlie 
furnace fires, while a number of men and lads stood round, 
using filthy language and uttering terrible blasphemies. 
They threatened to keep him Avhere he stood until he swore, 
but he remained silent ; till at last one, in whom some little 
feeling of humanity was left, delivered him from his torment- 
ors. The clergyman of the parish, hearing of it, asked him 
how he felt when in that fearful state. ^' Sir," was the simple 
answer, I never fdt tliat Jesus was so near me.'^ 

PEESEYEEANCE 

Like raising heavy weights, all the labour is lost if it be not 
kept up to tlie end. 

— is a very different thing from rrrpdarify. A man of business 
may go every morning all the year round to his work, and do 
the same kind of work in the day, and yet be a most fickle 
and inconstant man. Eegularity is only like clock-work. 
Perseverance is the effort of will, continuously directed to some 
settled purpose. 

The wall of St. Paul's. TVhen the wall of old St. Paul's 
was pulled down to make room for the present building. Sir 
Christopher Wren came to a big piece of old wall of a very 
formidable character. He gave orders for a battering-ram to be 
prepared. It began its work, but at first made little impres- 
sion, l^ot so much as a stone budged, nor a piece of mortar 
cracked, till on the fourth day, at twelve o'clock, a crack Avas 
seen from the top to the bottom. Everybody was looking for 
the next blow, and directly it came, crash went the wall 
into a thousand pieces. The people said, * Dear me, what a 
blow that was, to be sure ! But it was not that particular 
blow that knocked down the old foundation, but the succes- 
sion of blows, of which that was the last required ; and so is it 
with all our efforts, which demand a succession of attempts. 

Among the different games and races of Athens, there was 
one in which they carried a burning torch in their hand. If 



PEESEVEEANCE. 



221 



they arrived at the end without its being extinguished, they 
obtained the prize. Thus they shall be saved, saith the 
Saviour, who endure to the end. It is not the man who 
makes a splendid profession for a season ; it is not the man 
who appears to carry the torch of truth only a part of the 
way, that shall be crowned; but he who perseveres, and 
whose lamp is trimmed, and who holds fast his confidence, 
and the rejoicing of his hope firm unto the end." Yet, alas 1 
how many seem to bid fair for a season, but in time of tempt- 
ation fall away. Epictetus tells us of a man returning 
from banishment, who on his journey towards home called at 
his house, and told a sad story of an imprudent life, the 
greater part of which being now spent, he was resolved for 
the future to live philosophically— engage in no business, be 
candidate for no employment, not to go to court, nor to salute 
Cgesar with ambitious attendances; but to study, and worship 
the gods, and die willingly when nature or necessity called 
him. Just, however, as he was entering his door, letters 
from Csesar met him, and invited him to court, where, alas ! 
he forgot all his promises, which were warm upon his lips, 
grew pompous, secular, and ambitious, and gave the gods 
thanks for his preferment. Thus many form resolutions in 
their own strength, make for a season some pretensions to 
seriousness, but are like the children of Ephraim, who though 
" armed and carrying bows, yet turned back in the day of 

battle " (Buck), 

St. Isidore. A Spanish boy, wearied with the drudgery 
of learning, ran away from school. As the sun grew hot, he 
sat down to rest beside a little spring that gushed from a 
rock. Whilst he reclined in the shade, he noticed that the 
constant dropping of the water had scooped out a hole in a 
hard stone beneath. The thought came to his mind, If 
the light drops of water can by continual falling accomplish 
so hard a task, surely by constant learning I may overcome 
my unwillingness to learn 1" He returned to school, perse- 
vered in his studies, and became famous in after years as a 



222 



PERSEVERANCE. 



great saint and doctor of the Spanish Church, St. Isidore of 
Seville. 

Arago, when a boy, was much discouraged by the study of 
mathematics. But one day he found on the leaf of the 
cover of a text-book a short letter from D'Alembert to a 
youth discouraged like himself; the advice was, *'Go on, 
sir ; go on." That little sentence, said Arago, was the best 
teacher in mathematics I ever had. He did persevere, 
took one step at a time, and now all the world knows his 
fame. 

Thomas Clarkson, when a young man, fired with enthu- 
siasm and philanthropy, at a certain spot at Wodesmill, 
Hertford, resolved to devote his life to the abolition of slavery. 
The day was in June, 1785. It was a twenty years' struggle ; 
but in the end, persevering effort was crowned with victory 
(see Anti-Slavery Socidy). After his death in 1825, an 
obelisk was erected by Mr. Arthur Gales Pullen to mark the 
spot where the resolution was first formed. It would be a 
good lesson to many young persons to make a pilgrimage to 
it, or, at least, to learn a lesson from reading of it. 

The Eev. Spencer Thornton had often unsuccessfully urged 
an old parishioner to the duty of coming to public worship. 
At last the man was laid up in bed by illness. The curate, on 
hearing this, called upon him. Entering the cottage, he asked 
to see him; the old man, recognizing his voice, and perhaps 
hearing his request, called out rudely, " I don't want you 
here; you may go away." The next day Mr. Thornton 
again presented himself with inquiries after him, and an 
expressed desire to see him, calling out from the stairs, 
" Well, my friend, may I come up to-day T' Again he was 
answered, " I don't want you here." Twenty-one days 
successively did the patient clergyman come to the cottage, 
with the same request, and on the twenty-second he obtained 
admittance to the bedside of the sick man. Henceforth he 
was permitted to read God's word to him, pray by him, and 



PLEASURE. 



223 



impart such instruction as was blessed to tlie poor man's 
soul. The aged sufferer recovered, and became one of the 
most regular attendants on the services of the Church as long 
as he lived. 

PLEASUEE. 

Everything in religion is a pleasure or a remedy. Plea- 
sure must have the warrant that it is without sin, and the 
measure that it is without excess. He who has no govern- 
ment of himself has no enjoyment of himself. 

The pleasure which is unshared by others is only half a 
pleasure. 

" The men most to be pitied/' says Smiles, are those who 
have no command over themselves, who have no feeling of 
duty to others, who wander through life seeking their own 
pleasures ; or who, while performing good deeds, do so from 
mean motives, from regard to mental satisfaction, or from fear 
of the reproaches of conscience." 

All our enjoyments are but blessings in bullion till grace 
and God's approbation stamp them as current coin. 

Ariosto, in one of his romantic legends, tells us of a tree, 
many-branched and covered with delicate flowers ; but whoso 
shook this tree to win the fruit, found too late that not fruit, 
but stones of crushing weight came down upon his head. 
The sensualities which fools call pleasure are such a tree. 
They who seek its fruit become its victims (S. Coley), 

Pleasures of sin. " There is more bitterness," says Dyer, 
" following upon sins' ending, than ever there was sweetness 
flowing from sins' acting. You that see nothing but well in 
the commission will sufi'er nothing but icoe in its conclusion. 
You that sin for your profit will never profit by your sin." 

POPULATIOIT OE THE WOELD. 
It is diflicult to estimate exactly the population of the 
world, as the different accounts vary so much. The ^ Bevol- 



224 



POPULATION OF THE WORLD. 



kenung/ a well-known German statistical publication, gives 
the following as the present estimate : 



Europe 
Asia ... 
Africa 
America 
Australia and ) 
Polynesia J 
Polar Keirions 



Sq. Kilo. 
y,7oU,0 I 


Population. 
6H , i 4:0,4UU 


No. per 
Sq. Kilo. 


44 580 759 


795 591 000 


180 


29,823,253 


205,823,200 


70 


38,473,138 


100,415,400 


2-6 


8,952,855 


4,232,000 


0-5 


4,478,200 


82,500 




136,038,872 


1,433,887,500 


10^ 



The population of the civilized countries of the world has 
doubled since tlie beginning of the present century. The 
population of the whole world increases about 10,000,000 
every year. Thirty years ago Great Britain had 24,000,000 
of inhabitants, France, 34,000,000, the United States, 
25,000,000. In 1882 the United States had reached 
51,000,000, Germany, 45,000,000, France, 38,000,000, Great 
Britain almost 36,000,000. 

The following is taken as a comparison of the different 
religions, from the Church Missionary Society's Almanack 
for 1881. 



r Jews 7,527,000 

Mahommedans 169,129,000 

Hindoos, including \ •xnr ano r\r\c\ 

1 . • 1 ^ > ... 176,673,000 

aboriginal races \ ' ' 

Pagans 168,653,000 
Eeligions not specified ] 

(heathens without a book- > 8,976,000 
religion) j 

Total, :^on-Christians 1,033,505,000 



POPULATION OF THE WOELD. 



225 



Eoman Catholics ... ... 190,315,000 

Protestants 115,218,000 

Greek Church 77,958,000 

Armenians and Copts, ) ... a Kon aaa 

AT. • • p } 4,589,000 

Abyssimans, &c. j ... ' ' 

Other Christians not specified 2,461,600 

Total, Christians ... 390,541,600 



Grand Total 1,424,046,600 



According to this it appears, that of the whole population 
60 per cent, are heathen; 12 per cent. Mahommedan; 27|- 
per cent. Christian. But of the Christian portion, only two 
17ths are Protestants ; that is to say, Protestant Christendom 
at present comprises only one-twelfth of mankind. 

Can it be calculated how many human beings have 
lived in the world from its beginning'? Some learned 
men profess to have made a calculation, which is probably 
more amusing than dependable. The number they reckon is, 
36,627,843,275,075,846 ! One thought is suggested when 
dealing with such a subject, — What a conception it ought to 
give of the Infinite greatness of that God, who has created all 
these countless millions that have ever lived upon the earth ; 
and what an idea of His goodness, who has fed them from His 
table, and made all nature to minister to their comforts ; of 
His omniscience, who can take in at a glance aU the histories 
in the most minute details, concerning each one of the vast 
total ; and of His mercy, who has for so many centuries borne 
with the rebellion and ingratitude of so many millions of His 
creatures. 

Yet the world is, after all, very small. In a publication 
called ^ Atheism and Scepticism,' by Mr. Arthur Brandon, 
Chelsea, which offers ^^£20 award'' as a challenge, the 
writer says, " It is estimated that, allowing two square feet of 
standing room to each person, the Isle of Wight would 
enclose with ease the whole population of the globe i " 

A QUESTION. Has it ever occurred to the reader to make 

Q 



226 



FOOR. 



an estimate of the money it must cost to provide for the many 
millions of human beings now living in the world ? Suppose 
an average could be taken, reckoning all the rich and luxurious, 
who fare sumptuously every day, with the poor and destitute ; 
taking account also of the infants and children, and many of 
the heathen tribes, who live on very little. Will the reader 
fill up for himself the following blank, taking an average of 
£10? or £'201 more or less for each of the 1,400,000,000 who 
now people the globe,, and putting doAvn the 
result ... ... ... ... ... £ 

Then a similar averac^^e for the clothincj of 
every man, woman, and child ... £ 

Then adding in the same way for the houses 
where they live, varying from tlie royal palace, 
the lordly mansion, the splendid home, to the 
humble cottage and simple hut ... £ 

At the lowest estimate, such a sum must sound startling ! 
Yet this is for a single year, and this, again, is apart from all 
the money required for the purposes of trade and commerce, 
railways, navigation, art, and pleasure, &c. 

A SINGULAR CALCULATION is given in the ' Clerical World ' 
for June 7, 1882. The following, based upon a careful array 
of statistics, is from the ']S"ew Englander,' and will be read with 
interest. Taking the average annual increment in France, 
and applying it to the whole human race, it will be found that 
six persons will increase to 1,400,000,000 persons in 4211 
years : 1,400,000,000 persons was the estimated population of 
the world in 1863, and 4211 before a.d. 1863 brings us to 
2348 B.C., the exact date of the Flood.'' A coincidence like 
this is, to say the least, curious ! 

POOR 

Heathenism always made it a principle to exalt the top of 
society, but regarded it as undignified to care for the poor. 
Christianity cares for all, but has a special care for the poor 
and lowly. Christ spake few sayings exalting the great and 



POOR. 



227 



the high, but many against offending "one of these little 
ones.'' 

Grotius, it is said, when returning from a visit to the 
death-bed of a poor but pious peasant, said to a friend, I 
would give all my learning to have the simple faith of that 
poor man/' 

The poor in our mission-fields. As it was in the first 
setting up of the Christian faith, so it has been in the estab- 
lishment of our modern Missions. Look at India, China, and 
elsewhere ; the largest proportion of the converts are gathered 
from the poor. Yet the liberality of these persons in sup- 
porting the Church and Church work is frequently a matter 
of the greatest surprise and admiration to the Church at home. 

A YOUNG WOMAN who lay in bed in the workhouse, was 
asked what she w^as thinking about. " I was just thinking,'* 
was the answer, what a change it will be from this work- 
house to the palace of the Great King ! " 

Poor but illustrious. I have often read deeply interest- 
ing lists of great men, who have risen originally from the 
lower strata of society. Beginning at the foot of the ladder 
by natural genius, and for the most part by plodding industry, 
they have climbed step by step to the top. Mr. Smiles, in his 
interesting works, gives several lists of eminent men, who 
began life as barbers, joiners, shoemakers, tailors, day-labourers, 
&c., and ended life with names enrolled amongst the annals of 
the great. A similar list might easily be drawn out for the 
heroes of the Christian Church. Among the great Eeformers, 
e. g., Huss was the son of a peasant, Luther the son of a 
miner, Calvin the son of a cooper, Melancthon the son of an 
armourer, Zwingle was a shepherd, Latimer the son of a farmer. 
Among theologians and preachers of later times. Archbishop 
Tillotson was the son of a clothier ; Isaac Barrow the son of 
a draper ; John [N'ewton began life as a sailor boy ; Scott the 
commentator was the son of a Lincolnshire grazier, and 
worked on his father's farm ; Andrew Fuller was engaged in 
husbandry until twenty years of age ; Dr. Williamson, the 

Q 2 



228 



POOK. 



writer on Divine sovereignty, was tlie son of a small Welsh 
farmer ; Dr. Pye Smitii began his life in a retail shop ; 
William Jay was a stone-mason ; and the two names of 
universal celebrity, Jeremy Taylor and John Bunyan, might 
croAvn the list ; the one was the son of a hair-dresser ; the 
othur, as everybody knows, the Bedfordshire tinker. 

We might add a long list of philanthropists and 
missionaries — George Whittield was the son of an innkeeper ; 
Henry Marty a the son of a miner ; Joseph Lancaster, the 
pioneer of national education, the son of a basket-maker ; 
Cranfield, so eminent for his ragged schools, was a small 
tailor ; whilst of John Pounds, who began the ragged schools 
at Portsmouth, Dr. Guthrie says, " John Pounds is an honour 
to humanity, and deserves the tallest monument raised within 
the shores of Britain." A printer ab Gloucester began the 
English Sunday schools, which perhaps deserves a monument 
higher stilL A cobbler at Northampton began the first 
Baptist mission in India; and Morrison, equally illustrious 
in the mission in China, was a maker of boot lasts ; John 
Williams, the martyr of Eromango, was apprenticed to an 
ironmonger. But the list is endless of the noble army of 
those who, though ^' poor," yet are honoured ^*as making 
many rich." 

Poor but happy. ^' An old and simple woman," said 
CEgidius, if she loves Jesus, may be greater than was 
Brother Bonaventura." AYant of learning, and inability to 
consider great secrets of theology, do not at all retard our 
progress to spiritual perfection. Love to Jesus may be better 
promoted by the plainer understanding of honest and unlearned 
people than by the finer and more exalted specimens of great 
clerks that have less devotion " [Jeremy Taylor), 

The treasures of the Church. The satellites of one of 
the Eoman emperors, it is related, hearing that the treasures 
of the Church had been confided to St. Lawrence, carried him 
before the tribunal, and he was required to say where the 
treasures were concealed. He answered, that in three days 



POOR, EELIEF OF THE. 



229 



he would sliow tliem. On the thh^d day St. Lawrence 
gathered together the sick and the poor, to whom he had 
dispensed ahns, and placing them before the prefect, said, 
Behold ! here are the treasures of the Church " (Handbook 
of Illustrations), 

POOE, RELIEF OF THE. 

The poor of England were maintained voluntarily by the 
Church, and by the religious establishments, before the time 
of Henry YIIL When Henry YIII. dissolved the monas- 
teries and religious houses, vast numbers of the poor were 
necessarily thrown upon the country, yet were forbidden to 
beg ; the penalty for begging was made very severe. The 
punishment for the first offence was whipping ; for the second 
to have the right ear cut off ; and death for the third. The 
present poor law originated in the reign of Qaeen Elizabeth, 
1560. In 1580 there was paid for the support of the poor, 
£108,811 ; in 1748-50 the average was £730,000 ; between 
1770-75, £1,500,000. The American war followed, and 
from that time to 1814 the amount of the rates for the poor 
regularly increased, the last three years averaging £6,123,177. 
From 1813-44 inclusive, the sums levied under the Poor 
Law Acts were £238,153,571, of which £190,369,632 was 
expended on the poor. From 1840 — 1881 inclusive, the 
amount received as the poor rates was for England and Wales 
£403,507,392, and for the United Kingdom, £464,517,798 ; 
the amount expended in actual relief of the poor being for 
England and Wales, £264,260,808. The poor rates for 1881 
amounted to £14,340,592, more than one-third of this being 
expended in other purposes than the relief of the poor. The 
actual relief to the poor for the year ending Lady Day, 1881, 
amounted to 65. ?>d. per head of the estimated population, 
while the sums levied as poor rate was equal to IO5. 3d per 
head. 

Decrease of cost. In a speech on the Poor Law, delivered 
at Lancaster in 1881 by Mr. Hibbert, M.P., Mr. Hibbert said, 



230 



POPEEY. 



that the cost of the relief of the poor had materially dimin- 
ished during the last ten years. In 1871 it was 6s. lid. per 
head; in 1881, 6s. 3d., and this in spite of the increase of 
population and depression of so many branches of national 
industry during that time. 

Yet notwithstanding all the provision made, by public and 
private benevolence, it appears from the official returns, that 
in 1881^ in the metropolis alone, 110 persons died from' 
starvation 1 

The published returns of pauperism for January, 1881, which 
is the last complete return issued, shows that on that day there 
were 1,011,339 persons in receipt of parish relief. Mr. Purdy, 
who is at the head of the statistical department of the Poor Law 
Board, states that the number of applications for relief during 
a year are three and a half times the number upon the books 
at one time during the year : this makes a total of applications 
of 3,539,686, or about one in ten of the entire population. 
It has been said, that if we remember that there are at least 
as many people constantly upon the verge of pauperism as 
there are who apply for relief, this will make over 7,000,000 
of the population of the country constantly on the verge of 
destitution, or about one-fifth of the whole of our people. 
Surely, such a fact should call for inquiry and for sympathy ! 

POPERY. 

The testimony of Charles Dickens, by no means a pre- 
judiced witness, was very striking. " I don't know," he wrote 
from Lausanne, " whether I have mentioned before, that in 
the valley of the Simplon hard by here, where (at the bridge 
of St. Maurice over the Rhone) the Protestant canton ends, 
and a Roman Catholic canton begins, you might separate two 
perfectly distinct and different conditions of humanity, by 
drawing a line with your stick in the dust on the ground. 
On the Protestant side neatness, cheerfulness, industry, educa- 
tion, continual aspiration, at least, after better things. On 
the Roman Catholic side dirt, disease, ignorance, squalor, and 



PEAISE. 



231 



misery. I have so constantly observed the like of this since 
I first came abroad, that I have a sad misgiving that the 
religion of Ireland lies as deep at the root of all its sorrows, 
even as English misgovernment and Tory villainy. 

And again he says, " As to the talk about their opposition to 
property and so forth, there never was such mortal absurdity. 
If I were a Swiss with a hundred thousand pounds, I would 
be as steady against the Roman Catholic cantons and the 
propagation of J esuitism as any radical among them, believing 
the dissemination of Eoman Catholicity to be the most 
horrible means of political and social degradation left in the 
world.'' 

Adam Smith says, *^The Church of Eome is the most formid- 
able combination that was ever formed against the authority 
and security of civil government, as well as the liberty, reason, 
and happiness of mankind." 

Bishop Wilberforcb never said a truer thing than this, 
" Evasion seems to me to be the very clinging curse of ever}^- 
thing Roman and Romanistic." 

The Articles of the Church of England. It should not 
be forgotten, that of the XXXIX Articles of the Church of 
England, XXII contain protests against the false doctrines 
and errors of the Church of Rome. 

Luther was perhaps the most determined opponent the 
Church of Rome ever had, yet he well said for himself, I 
am more afraid of my own heart than of the Pope and all his 
cardinals. I have within me the great Pope — -Self." 

PRAISE 

— "is the only employment in which self finds no part. 
In praise we go out of ourselves, and think of Him to whom 
we offer it. It is the most purely disinterested of all 
services. It is gratitude without solicitude, acknowledgment 
without petition. Prayer is the overflowing expression of 
our wants, praise of our affections ; prayer is the language of 
tlie destitute, praise of the redeemed man. If the angelic 



232 



PRAYER. 



spirits offer their praise exempt from our mixture of infirmity 
and alloy, yet we have a motive for gratitude unknown, at all 
events, to the angels : they are unfallen and holy beings ; they 
cannot say, as we can, ' Worthy the Lamb, for He was slain 
for us/ Prayer is the child of faith, praise of love ; prayer 
is prospective, praise takes in its wide range enjoyment of 
present, remembrance of past, and anticipation of future 
blessings ; prayer points the only way to heaven, praise is 
already there " {Hannah More), 

I SEE A DOXOLOGY. A little boy, taking a walk one bright 
morning, when the sun was shining in its power, and all 
nature seemed to smile in beauty, turned to his mother and 
said, " Mother, I see a doxology — Praise God from whom all 
blessings flow." 

— HELPS TO KEEP OUR BLESSINGS. " IMauy favours which God 
gives us," sa3^s old Fuller, ravel out for want of hemming, 
through our own unthank fulness ; for though prayer pur- 
chaseth blessings, giving praise doth strengthen the quiet 
possession of them." 

Faith brings forth praise. He who can trust will soon 
sing. God's promise, when fulfilled, is a noble subject for 
praise, and even before fulfilment it should be the theme of 
song, like Judah in the day of Jehoshaphat (2 Chron. xx. 
21—25). 

" Praising Christians are very few in number and very 
faint in their work; they bear scarce any proportion to 
praying Christians. We shall not go far astray if we say 
that God hears a hundred prayers for every song of praise 
{Poicer) . 

PRAYER 

" We feeble mortal men have the privilege of speaking 
to our Maker. We utter words here, or pour out our 
desires in the closet; or when walking in the street, or 
engaged in our daily employment, we breathe an ejaculation. 
The word may be scarcely louder than a whisper, it may be 



PEAYER. 



233 



inaudible to our neighbour, and yet it cannot die away into 
silence, nor can it be lost through blending with other 
sounds ; nothing can drown it, nor prevent it reaching its 
destination. It passes beyond sun and stars, it enters the 
presence-chamber of the Almighty. Amid the ceaseless 
strains of praise, that whisper reaches the Divine ear, touches 
the Infinite heart, moves the Omnipotent arm. It brings 
forth troops of angels on ministries of mercies. It sets in 
motion long trains of events, and brings down showers of 
blessing on those who uttered it" (W. Landels), 

" A DESIRE is a small matter, especially of the poor man ; 
yet God regards the desires of the poor, and calls a good 
desire the greatest kindness. ^' The desire of a man is 
kindness" (Prov. xix. 22). A tear makes no great noise, 
yet it hath a voice. ^' The Lord hath heard the voice of 
my weeping (Psal. vi. 8). It is no pleasant water, yet God 
bottles it up (Psal. Ivi. 8). A groan is a poor thing, yet it is 
the best part of prayer sometimes ; a sigh is less, yet God is 
awakened and raised up by it. A look is less than all these, 
yet it is regarded ; breathing is less, yet the Church could 
speak of no more (Lam. iii. 56) ; panting is even less than 
breathing, when one is spent for lack of breath, yet this is 
all that some godly man can boast of, and it is heeded by the 
Almighty'' {Sheffield). 

The value of prayer. " Prayer is the wealth of poverty, 
the refuge of affliction, the strength of weakness, the light of 
darkness. It is the oratory that gives power to the pulpit ; 
it is the hand that strikes down Satan and breaks the fetters 
of sin : it turns the scales of Satan more than the edge of the 
sword, the craft of the statesman, or the weight of the 
sceptre ; it has arrested the wing of time, turned aside the 
very scythe of death, and discharged heaven's frowning and 
darkest cloud in a shower of blessings " {Dr. Guthrie). 

'^Tor the most part, we should pray rather in aspiration 
than in petition, rather by hoping than requesting ; in which 
spirit also we may breathe a devout wish for a blessing on 



234 



PRAYER. 



others, upon occasions when it might be presumptuous to beg 
it" {Leigh Hunt). 

— AND HOLINESS. " He who prays as he ought will en- 
deavour to live as he prays. He who can live in sin, and 
abide in the ordinary duties of prayer, never prays as he ought. 
A truly praying, gracious frame is utterly inconsistent with the 
love of, or reserve for, any sin " [Owen). 

— AND WORKS. The Queen of Madagascar, gathering some 
of the palace officers together, said to them, " I am aware that 
many of you are numbered amongst praying people. I have 
no objection to your joining them, if you think it right ; but 
remember, if you do so I shall expect from you a life worthy 
that profession. I know that praying people profess to be 
truthful, honest, and upright, to fear God, and benefit their 
fellow-men : if you do so, that will be right; if not, you will 
not be worthy of the profession you make." 

" One of the Eoman warriors attributed his victory to the 
fact that the gods favoured him because he begged for success 
with his drawn sword in his hand, and fought while he was 
crying to heaven for help. Prayer and works go together in 
God's economy of grace. Victories are won upon our knees ; 
but praying should never hinder righting, and conflict should 
never be urged as an excuse for neglecting prayer {Clergy- 
mans Magazine). 

Continued. The Eev. Philip Henry, after praying for 
two of his children who were dangerously ill, said, ^' If the 
Lord will be pleased to grant me this my request concerning 
my children, I will not say, as the beggars at my door used 
to do, ' I'll never ask anything of Him again,' but, on the 
contrary, He shall hear oftener from me than ever, and I will 
love God the better as long as I live." 

Elevating influence of. Sometimes a fog will settle 
over a vessel's deck, and yet leave the topmast clear. Then a 
sailor goes up aloft and gets a look out, which the helmsman 
on deck cannot get. So prayer sends the soul aloft, lifts it 
= above the clouds in which our selfishness and egotism befog. 



PRATER. 



235 



us, and gives ns a chance to see wliich way to steer " 
{Spurgeon), 

Always available. " There is no limited time in the court 
of heaven for hearing petitions ; it is not hke the courts of 
earthly princes, for there is free access any day of the week, 
any hour of the day or night, any minute of the day " 
{Bog an). 

Delay in answering. " They that have conduit water 
come into their houses, if no water come, they do not conclude 
the spring to be dry, but the pipes to be stopped, or broken. 
If prayer speed not, we must be sure that the fault is not 
in God, but in ourselves ; were w^e but ripe for mercy. He is 
ready to extend it to us, and even waits for this purpose " 
(J". Trapp), 

Eeality in prayer. Eemember, God respecteth not the 
arithmetic of our prayers, how many they are ; nor the 
rhetoric of our prayers, how long they are ; nor the music of 
our prayers, how methodical they are ; but the divinity of 
our prayers, how heart-sprung they are. [N'ot gifts, but graces, 
prevail in prayer" (/. Trapp). 

A SECRET OF SUCCESS. A minister, observing a man on 
the road breaking stones, and kneeling to get at his work 
better, remarked, " Ah, John, I wish I could break the stony 
hearts of my hearers as easily as you are breaking these 
stones." " Perhaps, master, you dont work on your hteesj^ 
was the reply. 

John Walsh. The eminent John Walsh of Scotland, 
went to France with five companions, to escape the wrath of 
Scottish persecution in 1606. Many examples are given of 
the power of his ministry whilst he was there. At one time, 
when he was minister of one of the French villages, a friar 
came to lodge in the house where he w^as living, and asked 
to be lodged there for the night. He was kindly received, 
and a bedroom was given him near Mr. Walsh's. Happening 
to be awake during the night, he heard a continued whisper, 
which troubled him, as he thought it came from the house 



23G 



PRAYER. 



being haunted. Meeting a friend next day, the friend asked 
him how he had lodged. Oh," said he, very badly, for I 
heard a noise all the time, and lay awake. I always believed 
those Huguenot houses to be haunted, but I never proved it 
till last night." Why," said the friend, it was the minister 
at his prayers." What, does the minister prayT' Yes, 
more than any man in France." The friar was surprised, and 
determined to prove the truth of it. He asked to be allowed 
to remain another night. Before sunrise, says the narrative, 
Mr. Walsh came down and began his family exercise, as he 
was wont. He sang a psalm, read a portion of Scripture, 
commenting on it, and then prayed. The friar was astonished. 
But the evening came, and with it the same kind of exercise. 
Before going to bed he went to Mr. Walsh's door, to satisfy 
himself. There he heard not a sound only, but the very 
words, and such words ! The next morning he spoke to Mr. 
Walsh, and opened his heart to him, acknowledged his 
ignorance, and asked for instruction. Most kindly did the 
minister receive him, bidding him welcome. The light 
entered his heart, and in it he walked from that time to his 
dying hour. 

The Cure d'Ars said one day to an old parishioner, whom 
he saw daily in the church, absorbed in prayer, " My good 
friend, what do you say to our Lord in those long prayers 
which you make to Him every dayl " "I say nothing to 
Him," was the reply ; I look at Him, and He looks at me " 
{Mlssioner's Manual of Anecdotes). 

A LITTLE child's PRAYER. A little boy, six years old, 
had just died, and the weeping parents were seated in sorrow- 
ful silence about the fair corpse, when a journeyman mason 
entered the room, and asked permission to look at the boy. 
The request was at first denied, but he asked so earnestly, 
that leave was granted. Hastily but with much feeling he 
approached the bed, and gazed on the beautiful face. ^* You 
may wonder," he said, " that I feel so much moved ; but God 
made use of that child to reach my hard and careless heart. 



PEAYER. 



237 



Some time ago I was coming down by a long ladder from a 
very high roof, and found your little boy standing close 
beside me when I reached the ground. He looked up in 
my face with childish Avonder, and then asked frankly, 
^ Weren't you afraid of falling when you were up so high 1 ' 
and before I had time to reply, he said, ' Ah 1 I know why 
you were not afraid. You had said your prayers this morning 
before you began your work.' My heart smote me at these 
words, for I had not prayed at all, and felt how little I 
deserved the Divine protection. Bat never have I forgotten 
to pray from that time to this, and by God's blessing I never 
will. Your boy was the messenger of God to me. His short 
life was not a useless life." 

The power of weakness. A dear child some time ago had 
a drunken father. This child had been to the Sunday School, 
and there found Christ. But his father was an infi lei as 
well as a drunkard, and vowed that if he went on praying in 
the house he would turn him out of doors. One night again 
the man found his child on his knees, and it seemed as if the 
fires of hell were kindled in his breast. He went to the room, 
took hold of the boy with a curse, and told him at once to 
pack up his clothes and leave the house. Poor child — 
drunkards' children have not many things to take away. But 
he took his little bundle, and went down to the kitchen where 
his mother was. He went up to her, and said, " Good-byo, 
mother." The mother said, My boy, where are you going 1 " 
He replied, " I don't know; father says I can't stay at home 
any longer, because I have been praying." The mother knew 
it would do no good to remonstrate. She took her child to 
her bosom, and kissed him with a mother's love. He went to 
his little brother and kissed him, and bade him good-bye ; then 
he went to his sister and kissed her ; then he told his father 
that he would pray for him as long as he lived, and thus he 
left the house. He had not gone far before the father's heart 
was touched. He ran down the street to fetch him back, and 
said, Hkly boy, if religion will do this for you I want it." 



238 



PRAYEE. 



And that child had the privilege of kneeling with the father 
and teaching him to pray, and further still, he led him to 
Christ. 

Sometimes a protecting shield. Bishop Patteson, in 
his noble work in the Malanesian Missions, was often in great 
danger from the savage natives. Once, indeed, he told a 
friend, he was being led by natives to a secluded spot for the 
purpose of putting him to death there and then, when he 
begged a few minutes' rest in a deserted hut, where he knelt 
down, and committed himself to God's hands, to do with 
him as He would. On rejoining his would-be murderers, he 
noticed a change in their behaviour towards him, and after 
consulting together, they turned and led him back safely to 
his ship. Afterwards he learned that they had watched him 
at prayer, and decided, from his peaceful and holy looks, that 
he could not be the man who had lately killed a relation of 
theirs, and so should be spared their vengeance " {Ford's 
Black and White). 

Mr. Wilberforce. It is recorded in his diary, how in 
1812 he was busily engaged in reading, thinking, consulting, 
and pleading the renewal of the East India Company's 
Charter. He was fully alive to the importance of the crisis 
with reference to the interests of Christianity, and its great 
influence on future missions. He thus wrote to his friend, 
Mr. Eutterworth : " I have been long looking forward to the 
period of the renewal of the East India Company's Charter 
as to a great era, when I hoped that it would please God to 
enable the friends of Christianity to be the instruments of 
wiping away what I have long thought, next to the slave 
trade, the foulest blot on the moral character of our country- 
men — the suffering our fellow-subjects (nay, they even 
stand towards us in the closer relation of our tenants) in the 
East Indies to remain without any effort on our part to 
enlighten and reform them, under the grossest, the darkest, 
the most depraving system of idolatrous superstition that 
almost ever existed on earth." The deepest anxiety was felt 



PRAYEH. 



239 



by all Christians for the issue of the debate. " I heard 
afterwards," he writes, " that many good men were praying for 
■QS all night." Their prayers and efforts were crowned with 
success ; and Mr. Wilberforce, when communicating the 
joyful news to his wife, writes, " Elessed be God ! we carried 
our question triumphantly about three, or later, this morning/' 

Mr. Moody. If Mr. Moody's visit to England had done 
nothing else, the starting the midday daily prayer-meetings 
would have been a work worth coming for. The daily prayer- 
meeting at the Young Men's Christian Association, Aldersgate 
Street, was commenced by him, and has been wonderfully 
blessed, and is so still. 

In travelling. It is an excellent rule for timid Christians, 
if they have not courage or tact to speak for Christ, to lift up 
the heart in prayer for fellow-travellers. We meet with many 
an anxious, careworn face. Let us try in this way, if in no 
other, to help to bear their burdens. 

Bishop McIlvaine, in a letter, mentions an interesting 
case which occurred in America. At one of the prayer- 
meetings after the battle of Chancellorsville, a fine young man 
came forward, and declared his peace in Christ, and asked the 
agent to write to his wife in ISTew York, who had often been 
urging him to seek the Saviour, and tell her what joy he had 
found. The agent asked the history of the case, which was 
this. During the battle of Chancellorsville he was detailed 
for ambulance duty. While engaged in carrying away the 
wounded, he picked up a little book out of the trampled road. 
He did not look to see what it was, but put it into his pocket. 
Soon he came to a wounded man, and was about to remove 
him, when a surgeon said he was dying, and that it was no 
use attempting to do anything for him. The poor dying man 
said to the young man, " Pray for me ; I am dying ; pray for 
me." The other said, 1 cannot ; I don't pray for myself." 
" But you must pray for me ; I am dying." The young man was 
greatly troubled. Tor the first time he wanted to pray. 
AYhat could he do 1 He thought of the book. What was it ] 



2i0 



PEEACHEES. 



He took it out. It was a copy of ' The Soldier's Prayer-Book/ 
put out by the Episcopal clergy in Philadelphia. On the 
first torn and muddy page was a prayer for a dying soldier. 
How remarkable ! He read it for that dying soldier. It was 
blessed to his own soul. He was captured, and carried to a 
prison in Pichmond, and then the Spirit of God visited him 
with deep convictions of sin and great distress. He had now 
found the Saviour, and could pray with his fellow-soldiers, 
and tell them of Christ. 

William Cari^y. WIicd his heart was first set upon the 
coudition of the heathen, before the way was made clear for 
him to go out as a missionary, he was never heard to pray 
without an entreaty for the abolition of the slave trade, and 
the conversion of the heathen. 

PREACHERS. 

" The cross is tlie strength of a minister. I, for one, would 
not like to be without it for the world. I should feel like a 
soldier without arms, like an artist without his pencil, like a 
pilot without a compass, like a mechanic without his tools. 
Let others, if they will, preach law and morality ; let others 
hold forth the terrors of hell and the joys of heaven ; let 
others drench their congregations Avith teachings about the 
Sacrament and the Church : give me the Cross of Christ. 
This is the only lever which has ever turned the world up- 
side down hitherto, and made men forsake their sins. And 
if this will not, nothing will " [Bislio]) Ryle), 

The Spirit's Power. Suppose a blacksmith was sent for 
to mend a number of broken iron vessels, and make them into 
entirely new forms, and was told that he must do it without 
fire, what would he say Yet sinners' hearts are as hard 
and cold. Just as foolish are they who thmk that all that 
is needed to convert men, is to begin and go on trying to 
hammer the truth into them, and this will do it ! JS^o ; those 
hearts must be melted, and be remoulded, and nothing will 
do it but the Holy Spirit's fire. 



PREACHERS. 



241 



Bradford. Foxe thus describes Bradford's preacliing : 
" Shortly he opened and reproved sin ; sweetly he preached 
Christ crucified ; pithily he impugned heresy and error ; and 
earnestly he persuaded to a godly life." 

Maxims for Preachers by one of themselves. 

1. Generally speaking, the more attention the style of a 
preacher attracts, the less it deserves. 

2. 1^0 teacher can teach his lesson until he has learned it 
himself. 

3. The pulpit "I" is not necessarily offensive, unless 
printed in italics. 

4. Preaching the Word, and preaching about the Word, are 
very different things. 

5. In expository preaching, a really good division is an 
exposition of itself. 

6. The preaching of foolishness must not be mistaken for 
" the foolishness of preaching." 

7. The preacher who is proud of his sermon should be 
ashamed of himself. 

8. A good illustration, like a sweet-toned bell, should at 
once invite and recompense attention to itself. 

At the same time, like a well-constructed reading-lamp, its 
principal use should be to throw light on the subject in hand. 

Besides this, however, if it is to fasten instruction on the 
mind, it must be driven home like a nail. 

9. Much of the importance of a text, like that of a fossil, 
depends on its site. Hence the importance of preaching on 
the context as well as on the text ! 

10. To call a sermon " beautiful " is very equivocal praise 
(Ezek. xxxiii. 32). 

" Paint Jesus Christ upon your canvas, and then hold 
Him up to the people ; but so hold Him that not even youc 
little finger can be se^n " -(Dr. Pay son). 

Critical or Practical. " There are two ways of treating 
seed. The botanist splits it np, and discourses on its curious 
character ; the simple husbandman eats and sows, and sows 

R 



242 



PRESENCE OP GOD. 



and eats. Similarly, there are two ways of treating the 
Gospel. A critic dissects it, raises a mountain of debate about 
the structure of the whole, and relation of the parts, and when 
he is done with his argument, he is done ; to him the letter 
is dead ; he neither lives on it himself, nor spreads it for the 
good of his neighbours ; he neither eats nor sows. The disciple 
of Jesus, hungering for righteousness, takes the seed whole ; 
it is bread for to-day^s hunger, and seed for to-morrow's 
supply " (Arnot). 

A GOOD old farmer one day standing in the hay-field, with 
the rake in his hand, was asked what he thought of a 
certain preacher. Oh, he's very good,'' he replied ; but he 
rakes with the teeth upside instead of down. He smooths it 
nicely over, but he gathers nothing in." 

A WHALER returning home from the fisheries gave a 
similar opinion, He is a good preacher, but there are no 
harpoons in his sermons." 

Two PRAYERS to be used for every preacher : " God, 
hold him up ! God, keep him down ! " 

Uncomfortable sermons. I remember one of my parish- 
ioners at Halesworth," says Archbishop Whately, " telling me 
that he thought a person should not go to church to be made 
uncomfortable. I leplied that I thought so too, but whether 
it should be the sermon or the worship that should be altered 
so as to avoid the discomfort, must depend on whether the 
doctrine was right or wrong." 

PEESEISrCE OF GOD. 
The presence of God's glory is in heaven ; the presence of 
His power on earth ; the presence of His justice in hell ; and 
the presence of His grace with His people. If he deny us 
His powerful presence, we fall into nothing ; if He deny us 
His gracious presence, we fall into sin ; if He deny us 
His merciful presence, we fall into hell " (Mason). 

The highest heavens and the lowest hearts are God's 
chiefest dwelling-places. He hath indeed other places. 



PRESERVATION FROM DANGER. 



243 



He dwelloth everywhere ; but in these two He manifests the 
peculiarity of His presence, and that peculiarity is the 
presence of His grace and comfort {Preston). 

If Jesus Christ be with thee, no enemy can hurt thee. 
If Jesus Christ be from thee, no friend can help thee." 

Pain. How many of our sweetest realizations of the 
presence of Jesus Christ have come to us through pain ! 

LiNN^us. The celebrated Linnaeus testified in his con- 
versation, writings, and actions, the greatest sense of God's 
presence. So strongly indeed was he impressed with the 
idea, that he wrote over the door of his library : Innocue 
vivite, Numen adest — Live innocently : God is present." 

PEESERVATIO]^" FEOM DAN"GER 

Dr. Leifchild relates that he was once preaching upon 
Ps. ciii., and enlarging upon the singular protection afforded 
to some persons while in an unconverted state, which had 
afterwards been graciously blessed to them ; adducing one or 
two instances which he had known. After the service, he 
returned to the house where he was staying. It was the 
house of a lady who had been one of his hearers. When she 
appeared, he was surprised to observe that her countenance 
bore the trace of deep emotion. Upon his noticing this, she 
said, Oh, sir, what a train of thoughts you have awakened 
in my heart this morning by your discourse ! What mingled 
feeling of sorrow for forgetfulness, shame for ingratitude, and 
wonder in reflecting upon the riches of Divine goodness and 
condescension with relation to myself ! " She then told him 
the incidents of her history. Many years before, she was 
staying at Margate for the restoration of her health, which 
had been enfeebled by the gaiety and dissipation of a worldly 
life. While there, she used frequently to go to Eamsgate, 
driving in her own carriage a horse which, though occasionally 
high-spirited, was generally quiet and docile. In some places 
the road ran at no great distance from the tall chalk cliffs, 
and at such a place one day she was met by a brewer s dray, 

B 2 



244 



PRESERVATION FROM DANGER. 



Unfortunately tlie rumbling noise made by the heavy vehicle, 
with the cracking of the driver's whip, so terrified the lady's 
horse that he suddenly reared, and then backed towards the 
clilF, the edge of which was soon reached, despite all her 
efforts to soothe him. At length the lady was thrown from 
the carriage, and fell over the cliff. This overthrow 
caused the animal to plunge madly forward, and draw the 
empty carriage from the edge of the cliff, and so he escaped. A 
man who had witnessed the whole, came forward, and others 
ran to the beach, expecting to find a mangled corpse ; but, 
mercifully, the fall had been broken by a projecting portion 
of the cliff, and on this the lady was lodged. There she 
lay, stunned and unconscious, till by kind hands she was 
released. Most wonderfully, she had received no dangerous 
bruises, and on recovering consciousness, was able to walk 
home — a wonder to the spectators, snatched, as it were, from 
the jaws of death. Yet, strange to say, this signal deliver- 
ance had no spiritual influence on the lady at the time, and 
was almost forgotten, till the sermon that morning brought it 
back vividly to her remembrance. But now, sir," said she, 

for the future, I beg of you to omit no opportunity of 
urging upon me to show my gratitude in all those ways in 
which I may be able. I should wish to consecrate my all to 
God's service and His glory from this day forth." 

When the Ring Theatre at Vienna was burnt down, the 
Eible Society's depot, just adjoining, contained £1000 worth 
of books, all in an inflammable form, ready for binding. 
Their building was separated from the burning theatre only 
by a thin wall. It appeared at the time as if nothing could 
stay the fire from destroying, or, at least, seriously damaging, 
their property ; but, strange to say, not a single copy was 
in the least degree injured. The Committee of the Society, 
feeling it the special interposition of the good Providence of 
God, as soon as all danger was over, met for prayer and 
praise ; and collected a thank-offering, to be presented to the 
sufferers from the accident which they had so mercifully 
escaped. 



PRIDE. 



245 



Paul Gerhardt, the nohle German preacher and Christian 
poet, was driven from his pulpit by the Elector of Branden- 
burg, and forced to leave the Principality where he had long 
found his field of labour and his home. One night, during 
his weary journey through the forest, going he knew not 
where, he stopped with his wife and children at a little inn. 
After supper he went out alone under the stars, to talk of his 
sorrows to his Father in heaven. Words of comfort came to 
him which, before retiring to rest, he wrote into one of his 
sweet hymns, of which these lines are a portion : 

" At cost of all I have, 
At cost of Kfe and limb, 
I cling to God, who yet shall save : 
I will not turn from Him. 

The world may fail and flee, 

Thou standest fast for ever ; 
Nor fire, nor sword, nor plague, from Thee 

My trustmg soul shall sever. 

**]N'o hunger and no thirst, 
ISTo poverty nor pain, — 
Let mighty princes do their worst, — 
Shall fright me back again.'' 

That night he was roused from sleep by a messenger from 
a stranger, who insisted on seeing him immediately. The 
man was a messenger from Duke Christian of Merseburg, 
who had heard of Gerhardt's troubles, and sent to invite 
him to his dominions, witl^ the offer of " church, people, 
house, home, and livelihood, with every comfort that could 
be added thereto.'' And thus one of the crowning blessings 
of that good man's life was to leave behind him what seemed 
to be only frowning providence " (Z)r. Neioton), 

peide; 

Our pride is often increased by what we retrench from 
other faults. 

" I have been more and more convinced, the more I think 
of it, that in general, pride is at the bottom of all great 



246 



PEISONS. 



mistakes. All the other passions are partly good; hut 
wherever pride puts in its word, everything goes wrong ; and 
what it might really he desirahle to do quietly and innocently, 
it is mortally dangerous to do proudly (BusMii). 

It is one of the popular errors of the present day to speak 
of a " proper pride," and so turn the vice into a virtue. 

" A PROUD MAN is seldom a grateful man, for he never 
thinks he gets as much as he deserves. When any mercy 
falls, he says, * Yes; hut it ought to be more.' It is only 
manna as large as a coriander seed, whereas it ought to he 
like a haker's loaf !" {Beeclier). 

Other vices choose to be in the dark ; only pride loves 
always to be seen in the light. 

PEISOIs^S. 

The great reformation in prisons in modern times is one of 
the signs of our social progress. "When John Howard began 
his benevolent work in 1773, the jailer used to receive no 
salary, and sometimes even paid a considerable sum annually 
for the situation. He was remunerated by the large fees he 
extracted, very much at his own caprice, from the prisoners, 
often accompanied with brutal violence. It was his per- 
quisite, too, to sell the food to them, and to supply, at an 
exorbitant price, the straw which served for their beds, 
unless they were either content or obliged to sleep on the damp 
floor. To be acquitted of the charge for which they had 
been arrested, by no means implied therefore that the 
prisoners were set at liberty. Even were they proved " not 
guilty," they were compelled to pay certain fees which the 
jailer had imposed ; and many who had been acquitted in 
the courts, were only taken back to prison and kept there for 
years, because they were not able to satisfy the cruel exac- 
tions of the jailer. How different is the state of things now ! 

The present reports of our prisons must, alas ! be always 
a subject of concern. The number of persons committed to 
prison at the year's end, March 31, 1882, was 188,586 



PEISONS. 



247 



(138,509 males, 50,077 females), of whom 119,114 (4148 
males, 7496 females) had been in prison more than ten 
times ^ and 1152 (915 men, 237 women) had been in penal 
servitude; 397 were under 12 years of age; 8039 over 
60 ; 56,900 were between 20 and 31 ; 41,480 between 30 
and 40. 

In the 67 prisons in the country, 2002 persons were 
employed officially, the total cost of the prisons being 
£362,130, or deducting the value of labour done by the 
prisoners in building, cooking, cleaning, &c., £137,611 — 
net, £224,519. 

In the 13 convict prisons, 10,221 persons were in confine- 
ment at the end of March, 1882. The cost of these prisons 
was £365,632, or £32 for each prisoner; or deducting the 
value of their prison labour, £217,275, leaving the net cost 
of each prisoner £11 16^. per annum. The expense of the 
Eeformatory Industrial Schools must be added, for which 
see sub voce. 

Intemperance. It is said by many that three-fourths of 
the crime of England, and the consequent misery, is the 
result of drink. The Eev. J. W. Horsley of Clerkenwell 
has shown in his book, ^ The Eays of the Prison Lamp,' that 
in his visitations as chaplain he found nine out of every 
twelve cases, and often more, were all traceable to this. If 
the intemperance of London weie eliminated, there would be 
found sufficient accommodation in Coldbath Prison alone for 
all the rest of the criminals. Besides which, the testimony 
of those who have had to do with prisons, is frequently urged 
as an argument for total abstinence. Mr. Kirton, the well- 
known Temperance advocate, asked the Governor of one of 
our prisons, who had had thirty years' experience, if he 
found the health of the prisoners injured because they could 
get no beer, ^'^.o, sir,'' was the answer ; " when they have 
been here six or twelve months, our experience is that we 
send them out of gaol weighing heavier than when they came 
in." Hard work, spare diet, and no beer, do nut kill. Mr. 



218 



PROFESSION. 



K. adds, " Over every prison door there might be witten, 
* Government Temperance Hotel ' ! " 

Out of 10,361 inmates of these prisons in England, 
Wales, and Scotland, 6572 had been in Sunday Schools, and 
in nearly all their downfall was connected with intemperance. 

[The labours of John Howard, General Oglethorpe, Mrs. 
Fry, and many others, for the physical, social^ and religions 
improvement of our prison population, are a noble record of 
self-denying heroism. John Howard in twelve years travelled 
upwards of 42,000 miles, enduring the most trying and 
unceasing hardships, and spent more than £30,000. At last 
he took the final journey, still carrying on his noble mission. 
At Kherson he caught the gaol fever. Alone, and amidst 
strangers, he died in his 64th year. To one who was by his 
bedside he named a spot in the churchyard at Daupliiny, 
where he wished to be buried. Lay me quietly," he said, 
*^ in the earth ; place a sundial on my grave, and let me bo 
forgotten."] 

PEOFESSIOK 

The MissiONARr penny. A little boy had two pennies 
given him. He put them aside for a time, and then resolved 
to keep one for himself, and to give one to the Missionary 
Society. By-and-by, as he was playing with them in his 
hand, one dropped into a chink on the floor, and was lost. 
" And which of the two," he was asked, was iti — your own, 
or the missionary penny Oh, that was the missionary 

penny," said the boy ! 

Trust not to appearance only. You are walking, for 
example, through a forest. Across your path, on the ground, 
lies a mighty tree, taU and strong. You put your foot lightly 
on it, and how great your surprise when, breaking through 
the bark, it sinks deep into the body of the tree ! — a result 
much less owing to the pressure of your foot than to the 
poisonous fungi and foul crawling insects that had attacked 
its core. They had left the outer rind uniujured, but 



PEOSPERITY. 



249 



had hollowed out its heart. Take care your heart is not 
hollowed out, and nothing left but the crast and shell of 
empty profession" (Guthrie). 

PEOSPEEITY 

EiGHTLY ESTIMATED. " Some years ago, when I was 
preaching at Bristol, amongst other notes I received to pray 
for individuals, one was this — person earnestly desires 
the prayers of the congregation, who is prospering in trade.' 
* Ah,' said I to myself, * here is a man who knows something 
of his own heart ; here is a man who has read the Scriptures 
to some purpose ' (Jciy), 

Its use and abuse. — " So use prosperity that adversity 
may not abuse thee ; if in the one, security admits no fears, 
in the other, despair will afford no hopes. He that in 
prosperity can foretell a danger, can in adversity foresee 
deliverance" (Quarles). 

The kichest soils bear the strongest weeds. 

PKOTESTAOTISM. 

Origin of the name. It is exceedingly interesting to 
remember how the name of Protestant first arose. On April 
19, 1529, was presented at the second Diet of Spires, by 
certain German princes, nobles, and clergy, the famous pro- 
test against the corruptions of the Church of Eome. The 
history is briefly this : In 1517 the star of the Eeformation 
arose above the German horizon. In that year stepped forth 
from his cell at Erfurt the monk who, under God, so entirely 
changed the fortune of Europe — Martin Luther. In 1521 
the youthful Emperor, Charles Y., but recently crowned, 
held at "Worms his first Diet, or solemn assembly of the 
princes and nobles and chief estates of the empire. The 
Pope had excommunicated Luther at Eome. The Emperor 
now summoned him to appear before the Diet at Worms. 
The intrepid monk, called upon to retract, was at first 
dazzled by the surrounding splendour, but soon recovered his 



250 



PROTESTANTISM. 



composure, and replied firmly, though modestly, that he could 
not do so unless his opinions were proved to be erroneous 
from the word of -God. He was accordingly condemned by 
a decree of the Diet, and was ordered to quit Worms under 
a safe-conduct in twenty-one days. At the expiration of 
that time, he and all his followers would be at the mercy of 
their enemies — the Popish princes, governors, and magistrates. 

From that day the Eeformation proceeded, amid struggles 
and reverses, till 1526, when was held the first Diet of 
Spires. To that was summoned all the princes of Germany. 
The Evangelical princes were surrounded by the ministers 
of the Word, and all their followers bore the letters, 
V.D.M.I.^., embroidered on their right sleeves The Word 
of the Lord endureth for ever "), so mightily had the Word 
of the Lord grown in Germany. War with the Turks, and 
a quarrel with the Pope, providentially frustrated the 
Emperor's intention of carrying into etfect the persecuting 
Edict of Worms ; and a middle course, allowing all tlie 
States a measure of religious liberty till the meeting of a 
General Council, was determined on by the Diet. 

The second Diet of Spires was held in 1529, and was 
presided over by Ferdinand, brother to the Emperor. The 
more liberal decree of the last Diet had been annulled in 
despotic terms by the Emperor, and it was intended to revive 
at the second Diet the Edict of Worms, which had con- 
demned Luther and his friends. The Evangelical party, on 
the other hand, demanded the maintenance of the Edict of 
the first Diet of Spires. Ferdinand and the Romish party 
carried matters with a very high hand, and had a majority. 
On the 18th of April it was resolved that the Evangelical 
party should not be heard again ; and Ferdinand prepared 
to strike the decisive blow on the morrow. On the morrow 
the famous and noble Protest was presented, and the pro- 
testing party appealed from the Diet to the Word of God, 
and from the Emperor Charles to the King of kings. It is 
interesting for Englishmen to know that at the head of the 



PROTESTANTISM. 



251 



protestors stood John the Constant, Elector of Saxony, of 
the same family, if not the direct ancestor, of our gracions 
Queen and her lamented Consort. 

An extract from this memorable document is well worth 
preserving : After refusing to consent to the Eepeal of the 
Decree of the first Diet of Spires, they assign as the second 
reason — " Because it concerns the glory of God and the 
salvation of our souls, and that in such matters we ought to 
have regard, above all, to the commandment of God, who is 
King of kings and Lord of lords ; each of us rendering Him 
account for himself, without caring the least in the world 
about majority or minority. Moreover, as to the new Edict 
declaring the ministers shall preach the gospel, explaining it 
according to the writings accepted by the holy Christian 
Church : we think that for this regulation to have any value, 
we should first agree on what is meant by the true and holy 
Church. !N'ow, seeing there is great diversity of opinion in 
this respect ; that there is no sure doctrine but such as is 
conformable to the Word of God ; that the Lord forbids the 
teaching of any other doctrine ; that each text of the Holy 
Scriptures ought to be explained by other and clearer texts ; 
that this Holy Book is, in all things, necessary for the 
Christian, easy of understanding, and calculated to scatter 
the darkness : we are resolved, with the grace of God, to 
maintain the pure and exclusive preaching of His Holy 
Word such as it is contained in the Biblical Books of the 
Old and iSTew Testament, without adding anything thereto 
that may be contrary to it. This Word is the only truth : 
it' is the sure rule of all doctrine and of all life, and can never 
fail or deceive us. He w^ho builds on this foundation shall 
stand against all the powers of hell, whilst all the human 
vanities that are set up against it shall fall before the face 
of God. Eor these reasons, most dear lords, uncles, cousins, 
and friends, we earnestly entreat you to weigh carefully our 
grievances and our motives. If you do not yield to our 
request, we protest by these presents, before God, our only 



252 



PROVEEBS. 



Creator, Preserver, Eedeemer, and Saviour, and who will one 
day be our Judge, as well as before all men and all creatures, 
that we, for ourselves, and for our people^ neither consent 
nor adhere in any manner whatsoever to the proposed decree, 
in anything that is contrary to God, to His Holy Word, to 
our right conscience, to the salvation of our souls, and to the 
last decree of Spires.'' 

Our own Protestant constitution. By the British Consti- 
tution, the reigning sovereign is bound by the solemn oath of 
consecration to maintain the laws of God, the true profes- 
sion of the gospel, and the Protestant Eeformed religion as 
by law established ; " and by the Bill of Ptights, " all and 
every person or persons, that is, are, or that be reconciled to, 
and still hold, communion with the See of Rome, shall be 
excluded, and be for ever incapable to inherit the Crown and 
Government of the Realm." 

Protestant Christendom now comprises about one-twelfth 
of the population of the whole world. (See Population.) 

The Jewish Rabbins say, that when Joseph, in the time 
of plenty, had gathered much corn in Egypt, he threw the 
chaff into the river Nile, that in flowing down to the neigh- 
bouring cities, and on to nations more remote, it might bear 
witness to them of the store of good things laid up in Egypt. 
Is it not so, that many of the subsidiary benefits of Protest- 
antism carry a witness all over the world, and tell of the 
source from which the truest liberty and fullest knowledge 
and blessing may be had, by the dissemination of a sound 
and enlightened Protestant Christianity 1 

PROVERBS 

— Have not always been an unmixed benefit to the world. 
There are several very mean and malignant proverbs embody- 
ing the wit of one man, and the ill-nature, not the wisdom, of 
many men. One of the worst of these proverbs is, There 
is no smoke without some fire " — a proverb which has lent its 
aid to thousands of gross calumnies. Perhaps we might 



PROVIDENCE. 



253 



venture to adopt a counteracting proverb, which has at least 
as much truth, physically and metaphysically, as the fore- 
going one. It is — " The less the fire, the greater the smoke 
{Sir A, Helps), 

PEOYIDENCE. 

God's gracious providence is thankfully to he acknow- 
ledged and adored, that hafch assigned us our stations under 
the Gospel. But then it must be remembered, that the 
Gospel hath the goodness not of the end, but of the means ; 
which, as by oar improvement or non-improvement, it becomes 
effectual or ineffectual, doth acquit from or aggravate con- 
demnation ; and that it works as a charm or spell, we know 
not how, or why, or when wo think not of it ; but by recom- 
mending itself, in the demonstration and power of the Holy 
Ghost, to our reason and consciences, to our wills and affec- 
tions, till we be delivered up into the mould or form of it " 
{Ho ice). 

The Master keeps the key. The mind of a pious 
workman, named Thremey, was much occupied with the 
works and ways of God, which appeared to him full of 
inscrutable mysteries. One day, in visiting a ribbon manu- 
factory, his attention was attracted by an extraordinary piece 
of machinery. Countless wheels and thousands of threads 
were twirling in all directions. He could understand nothing 
of their movement. He was informed, however, that all their 
motion was connected with the centre, where was a chest, 
which was kept shut. Anxious to understand the principle 
of the machine, he asked permission to see the interior. The 
reply was, however, " The Master keeps the hey'' The words 
came to him like a flash of light. Here was a word for himself. 
They seemed to be a whisper to his mind about higher things. 
Here was a solution of all his perplexing doubts — ^'^The 
Master keeps the key,^ He governs and directs. It is enough. 
What need I more 

His work is perfect. A Christian merchant met, very 



254 



PROVIDENCE. 



unexpectedly, with great lo.^ses. He was tempted to doubt 
the wisdom of Divine Providence, in allowing such trials to 
overtake him. He returned to his home one evening in a 
gloomy state of mind, almost despairing. He sat down before 
the open fire-place in his library, " tossed with the tempest of 
doubt," and unable to find any comfort. Presently, his little 
boy, a thoughtful child of six or seven, came and sat on his 
knees. Over the mantelpiece was a large illuminated card, 
containing the words, " His %oorh is "perfect,^' The child spelled 
out the words, and pointing to the card, *^ Papa, what does 
' perfect ' mean % " and then, before his father could reply, the 
little fellow answered it for himself, Doesn't it mean that 
God never makes a mistake V Here was just the thought 
that the harassed father needed, and it seemed as if sent at 
that moment from above ! 

Eemarkable Providences. A short time ago, an article 
appeared in the * Quiver,' entitled, " Providential Voices,'' 
giving several most interesting instances of God's watchful 
providence. The subject is one which every well-read Chris- 
tian may expand for himself. Several examples are given in 
'Illustrative Gatherings' (1st Series). Take one or two 
farther. 

When Dr. Judson was a youth at college, he imbibed 
deistical opinions from a fellow-student, who was also his 
friend. One night, after leaving college, being on a tour 
through the Northern States, he stopped at a country inn. 
The occupant of the room adjoining that in which he slept 
was taken seriously ill, and died in the course of the night. 
When informed the next morning, young Judson asked the 
landlord of the house if he knew who the dead man was. " Oh 
yes," said he, " he was a fine young fellow from Providence 

College, — a very fine fellow ; his name was E ." Judson 

was completely stunned. The dead man was his old college 
friend. How had he died ? He abandoned his tour, and 
hastened home, deeply impressed with the importance of 
seeking the Lord himself without delay! His subsequent 



PROVIDE^fCE. 



255 



history is well known. His noble work as a Chris tian — a 
minister — a missionary. How he died — full of honour — the 
well-known " Apostle of Burmah/' 

Rev. John Thorpe. The history of his conversion is very 
remarkable. He was a bitter persecutor of Wesley and 
Whitfield. One day he and his companions were in a public- 
house, when one of them proposed that they should preach in 
turns in mockery of the Methodists, each choosing his text at 
random. When Thorpe's turn came, he seized the Bible, 
saying, ^Tow I shall beat you all.'' He opened at the 
words, " Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." At 
the very sight of these words he was struck dumb. They 
went to his heart; the whole current of his thought was 
changed. Then a strange power of utterance seemed given 
him, and he preached as one who felt the truth of which he 
spoke. From that day he became a Christian man ; and 
after a time, a Christian minister. Masborough Chapel was 
built for him, and he preached there till his death. 

Rev. TF". Thorpe^ of Bristol. A series of remarkable pro- 
vidences are recorded of his early ministry. Preaching one 
Sunday morning, in a village where he laboured, on the text, 
" Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to 
come in," the words arrested the attention of a peasant who 
was there for the first time, and led to his conversion. The 
following Sunday he was there again, having succeeded, after 
much persuading^ to induce his wife to accompany him. That 
day the text was, " For what knowest thou, wife, whether 
thou shalt save thy husband] or how knowest thou, O 
husband, whether thou shalt save thy wife % " The man and 
the wife looked at each other and wept. On their return 
home, the wife, under deep conviction, opened her mind to 
her husband. They read the Bible and prayed together — he 
pointed her to the newly-found Saviour, and that night they 
rejoiced as one in the same salvation. They had one son. 
They asked him to accompany them the next Sunday. At 
first he refused, till his mother's tears touched his heart, and 



256 



PROVIDENCE. 



he consented. The preacher that morning announced his 
text, A wise son maketh a glad father ; hut a foolish son is 
the heaviness of his mother." The youth looked at the 
preacher earnestly, and wept. But then and there the arrow 
of conviction entered his heart. When the family returned 
home, he begged his parents' forgiveness for all his past mis- 
conduct, and confessed his sins to God. Thus by these 
several steps, all ordered by God, the whole household became 
a household of faith. 

Rev, C. H, Spvrgeon, when about to preach in the Crystal 
Palace, Sydenham, in 1857, it is said, went down a short time 
before the service, to arrange where the platform should be 
placed, and while trying the various positions, he cried aloud, 
" Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the 
world ! " A man was at that time at work in the Palace, who 
heard the text spoken under such unusual circumstances. 
It went with power to his heart, convinced him of sin, and 
led him to the sin-atoning Lamb, in whom he found forgive- 
ness, peace, and joy. 

The providence of God in leading to works of useful- 
ness is no less remarkable. 

Dr. Doddridge — himself preserved in a remarkable manner 
in infancy — when he became a young man, was anxious 
to enter the ]\Iinistry, but in spite of all his efforts, no 
door seemed to be opened. One day he was on his knees, 
earnestly asking God for directions, when he was startled by 
the letter-carrier's knock. A letter from a friend came, offer- 
ing to introduce him to the work he so much desired. 
Eegarding the letter as the answer to prayer, he embraced 
the offer ; and then began his course of usefulness as a 
Christian Minister, a College Professor, a writer of hymns, a 
Scripture commentator, making the Church of Christ his 
debtor for ages to come. 

A Minister op Trowbridge was extremely diffident, and 
having, as he thought, preached for some years to no purpose, 
came to the resolution that he would preach no more. He 



PEOVIDENCE. 



257 



reached this decision one Sunday afternoon, and intimated it 
to some of his friends. They endeavoured to dissuade him 
from his purpose, but in vain. Soon after, a person from a 
distance, who knew nothing of what was passing through his 
mind, called on him and expressed a strong desire that he 
would preach that evening from the words, " Then I said, I 
will not make mention of Him, nor speak any more in His 
name. But His word was in mine heart as a burning fire 
shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and 
I could not stay'' (Jer. xx. 9). Struck by the force of so 
singular a circumstance, he consented, and experienced so 
much comfort and power, that he continued to preach till his 
death, and was honoured with much visible success. 

Protecting. One bitter January night, the inhabitants 
of the old town of Schleswick were thrown into the greatest 
distress and terror. A hostile army was marching down upon 
them, and new and fearful reports of the conduct of the 
lawless soldiery were hourly reaching the place. In one 
large commodious cottage dwelt an aged grandmother, with 
her granddaughter and her grandson. While all hearts 
quaked with fear, the aged woman passed her time in crying 
out to God that He would " build a wall of defence round 
about them " — quoting the words of an ancient hymn. Her 
grandson asked why she prayed for a thing so entirely im- 
possible as that God would build a wall around their house ; 
but she explained that her meaning was only that God should 
protect them. At midnight the dreaded tramp was heard — 
an enemy came pouring in at every avenue, filling the houses 
to overflowing. But while most fearful sounds were heard 
on every side, not even a knock came to their door, at which 
they were greatly surprised. The morning light, however, 
made the matter clear; for, just beyond the house, the 
drifted snow had raised such a massive wall, that it was 
impossible to get over it to them. ''There," said the old 
woman, triumphantly, " do you not see, my child, that God 
could raise up a wall around usV* 



258 



QUARRELLING. 



Even a torn leaf from a Bible has many a time been 
the means, under God, of turning the sinner from the error 
of his way. "At a teachers' meeting of a Ragged and 
Industrial School, a conversation took place between a City 
Missionary and a Scripture Reader, about old Bibles. The 
City Missionary thought they had better be destroyed than 
used irreverently. The Scripture Reader differed in opinion, 
as he thought that, though torn, they might still do good. 
The very efficient master of the school, being present, spoke 
earnestly on the subject, and showed how the leaf of an old 
Bible had been the means, in God's hands, of his own con- 
version. ^ In my younger days,' he said, * I was wild, and 
fond of singing songs at taverns. After one such evening I 
was next day in a very distressed state of mind, and even 
thought of deserting my wife and child. While walking by 
a stream near Holt, in Xorfolk, I saw a piece of paper among 
some rubbish along tlie side of the sedge. I took it up, and 
found it to be the leaf of an old Bible, containing part of the 
fifty-first Psalm. The seventh verse first caught my eye. 

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean : wash me, and 
I shall be whiter than snow." I felt perplexed and puzzled; 
but I read the portion as I walked along the road, and on 
returning home, read the whole Psalm. It brought conviction 
to my heart, and from that time my whole course of life was 
altered. !N'ine months afterwards I came to London, and I 

was brought under the ministry of the Rev. Mr. R of 

R s Church, where I have been a communicant for the 

last nine years. I am certain that paper had been sent by 
God for me ' " {The Book and its Mission, 1857). 

QUARRELLING. 

A little explained, a little endured, a little passed over, 
and the quarrel is soon ended. 

Better to suffer without cause^ than to have cause for 
suffering. 

" It costs more to resent injuries than to bear them. 



QUAREELS. 



259 



" In a hundred ells of contention, there is not an inch of 
love. 

" To cast oil on the fire, will not put it out. 
" Go not to law, for the wagging of a straw. 

How often we are mistaken ! 
" When one will not, two cannot, quarrel. 
" An enemy gained is a friend won. 

A victory over temper is a victory indeed. 

Prayer for oneself, helps us to think charitahly of others. 
" There would he no quarrelling if we loved our neighbours 
as ourselves. 

" He that loveth God, will love his brother also." 

Home Words, 

QUAEEELS. 

It is sometimes observable how fellowship in trouble leads 
to a happy cessation of strife. Two dogs, a ^Newfoundland 
and terrier, had a terrible fight on a narrow bridge across a 
stream; and, as ought to be expected, were both speedily 
plunged into the water. The ISTewfoundland dog had no 
difficulty in effecting a speedy landing on the shore ; but the 
terrier, being of feebler powers, did not seem able to stem 
the torrent. He soon began to get visibly weaker, and was 
becoming exhausted. Seeing this, the big ^Newfoundland 
jumped into the stream, laid hold of him by the collar, and 
gallantly pulled him to the beach. After this the two 
became fast friends, and there was no more fighting between 
them. 

When worthy men fall out, only one of them may be 
faulty at the first; but if strife continue long, commonly 
both become guilty " {Fuller) ^ 

QUIETJSTESS. 

Hurry is the work of the flesh ; quiet, of the Spirit. 
There is a calm sense of power in following the Lord fully. 
A child was seen walking on the very narrow ledge over- 
hanging a yawning precipice, without knowing its danger. 

s 2 



260 



RAGGED SCHOOLS. 



Two sisters who were there suddenly saw it. One, impul- 
sive, and full of hurry, was at once rendered helpless by 
fright ; the other, quiet and self-possessed, saw the step to 
take, and gently called tlie little one to come to her open 
arms. ISTeed it be asked, which had most power for good] 

EAGGED SCHOOLS. 

Dr. Guthrie, who was long regarded as the apostle of the 
Eagged School movement, has given, in his graphic style, the 
record of how his own sympathies were first called out. It 
was from a picture he saw in an old, obscure, decaying 
burgh, that stands on the Frith of Forth, the birthplace of 
Thomas Chalmers. He went to see the place, and going to 
an inn for refreshment, found the room covered with pictures 
of shepherdesses with their crooks, and sailors in holiday 
attire. But above the mantelpiece there stood a large print, 
which represented a cobbler's room. Beneath the picture 
was the inscription, telling how John Pounds, a cobbler in 
Portsmouth, taking pity on the multitude of poor ragged 
children, unregarded by ministers, and magistrates, and 
ladie?, and gentlemen, to go to ruin on the streets, had, like 
a good shej^herd, gathered in these outcasts, trained them for 
God and for an honest life ; and how, while earning his own 
bread by the sweat of his face," he had rescued from misery 
and saved to society not less than five hundred of these 
children. Dr. Guthrie's tender heart was touched. That 
man," said he. " is an honour to humanity, and deserves the 
tallest monument ever raised within the shores of Britain.*' 
From that hour he took up the cause himself, and used all 
his eloquence and energy as its advocate and friend. 

And what noble and blessed results have followed. The 
movement has spread, and as one illustration of its success, 
it is said that in the last 39 years of the work of the Eagged 
School Union in London alone, upwards of 300,000 children 
have been rescued from the ranks of the criminal and 
degraded classes, and made good and useful members of 



RAILWAYS. 



261 



society ; and better still, there is the fullest evidence to hope 
a fair proportion have become true Christians. 

Intemperance. Dr. Guthrie repeatedly affirmed that 99 
per cent, of the children admitted into Eagged Schools were 
the offspring of intemperate parents. Dr. Bernardo has also 
examined the subject, and found that of 3000 who had up 
to that time been under his care, 77 per cent, arose from the 
results, directly or indirectly, of drink. 

EAILWAYS. 

The MARVELLOUS INCREASE of railways is shown by a 
comparison of the last 27 years. The following figures are 
from the Board of Trade Blue-Book, for the year ending 
Dec. 31, 1881. 

In 1854 the number of miles open — for England and Wales, 
was 6114; for the United Kingdom, 8054. Total paid-up 
capita], loans, and stock for England and Wales, 
£247,235,625 ; for the United Kingdom, £286,068,790. 
Total number of passengers for England and Wales, 
92,346,149 ; for the United Kingdom, 111,206,707. Total 
receipts for England and Wales, £17,342,925; for the 
United Kingdom, £29,215,724. J^et receipts for England 
and Wales, £9,472,438; for the United Kingdom, 
£11,009,529. 

In 1881, number of miles open in England and Wales, 
12,819; for the United Kingdom, 18,180. Total paid-up 
capital, loans, &c., for England and Wales, £616,453,000; 
for the United Kingdom, £745,519,000. Number of passen- 
gers for England and Wales, 557,556,000; for the United 
Kingdom, 622,423,000. Total receipts for England and 
Wales, £543,220,000 :fortheUnitedKingdom,£638,730, 000. 
^s^et receipts for England and Wales, £27,148,000 ; for the 
United Kingdom, £31,828,000. 

It appears also that the cost of lines open was, on the 
average, in 1835, £35,523; in 1880, £40,613. 

In 1867, 287,688,113 persons travelled by railway over 



262 



EAIN. 



74,886,409 miles, and paid £15,346,981, being an average 
of one shilling for each person. 

The NUMBER of RAILWAY SERVANTS connccted directly with 
the railways in the United Kingdom is about 160,000 ; and 
with those connected wath it as officers, clerks, hotel servants, 
&c., about 325,000 ; but this does not include those engaged 
in the construction of new lines, the number of whom must 
be very great. 

The number of miles travelled by passenger trains in 
one year was 112,548,258; by goods and mineral trains, 
115,408,845; by mixed trains, 2,999,352; altogether, 
240,256,494 miles. 

The capital now invested in railways in the United Kingdom 
is about £770,000,000, yielding a net receipt of about 
£35,000,000. 

The immense sums spent in the cost of constructing rail- 
w^ays was formerly very severe. It is now much reduced. 
In ordinary cases, railways w^th a double line are constructed 
in England for about £12,000 a mile — station-house, signals, 
&c., and all fixed plant included. 

Mr. H. Busson calculates that there are nearly 81,110 miles 
(English) of railways in Europe, which has cost a gross total 
of 424 millions sterling. 

EAIK 

One of the wonderful blessings in nature, of the marvels 
of which few think. Eain is one of the greatest purifiers 
and fertilizers of the earth and the atmosphere. 

The enormous quantity of rain falling in a single year may 
be judged of from the estimate of its bulk, being equal to 
186,240 cubic imperial miles ; or, if spread equally over the 
land of the globe, the rain would cover it w^ith water to a 
depth of three feet. All this huge deluge of water comes 
originally from the ocean, and is lifted up by evaporation. 

To give an illustration of this wonder of nature, in its 
ordinary course — an inch of rain falling on an acre of land, 



RAIN. 



263 



if collected, would weigh over 100 tons. There are 640 
acres in a square mile, so that an inch of rain on a square 
mile, if collected, would weigh 64,000 tons. The area of 
England and Wales and Scotland is 80,643 square miles. 
Suppose this to be covered with rain to the depth of one 
inch, there must have been discharged from the clouds a 
weight of water of 5,737,152,000 tons. Eut this is for a 
short time only, and for one small country in the world, 
where rain falls in very moderate proportion. What then 
must the weight of rain be that descends over the surface of 
the globe? and has descended from the beginning? In 
tropical countries, where a hot temperature prevails, a pro- 
portionate quantity of rain is required. The annual rainfall 
in Great Britain is about 28 inches ; on the Western coast, 
about 35 to 40 ; at the Equator it is 96 inches ; at Bombay, 
80. In some parts of South America it greatly exceeds the 
East. In some parts of Brazil it is said to be 280 inches. 

Equality. It is a remarkable circumstance," says Hart- 
wig, that the annual quantity of rain which falls in the 
same place remains about the same from year to year ; so that 
by an admirable balancing of conflicting influences, nature 
seems to have provided for stability, in a province which of all 
others might be supposed most open to the caprices of chance." 

In our temperate climate the proportion of fair and rainy 
days are pretty equal, though for the last few years the 
proverb has not been literally true, " There are more fair 
days than rainy ones." By a register published in the ^ York- 
shire Gazette,' of Leeds, from 1878 to 1882 inclusive, there 
were 811 fair days and 935 rainy in that town. 

Waterloo. " A few drops of water more or less," says 
Victor Hugo, turned the fate of Europe." He meant that 
the battle of Waterloo should have begun at 11 a.m., but 
there was so much rain the night before, that iN'apoleon could 
not move his artillery over the heavy mud plain until the 
afternoon, and that five hours' delay helped to decide the 
fate of Europe ; for Blucher did not arrive with his soldiers 



264 



till then, when the forces of the Iron Duke were all but 
exhausted." 

Eain in drought. Two or three years ago, in a season of 
unusual drought, the * Times ' estimated the value of a day of 
rain in England as equal in value to £1,000,000. (See the 
same estimate made of the value of a day of sunshine in 
Harvest-time.) 

Only a shower. About five-and- thirty years ago, a 
gentleman of fortune, who had been brought up without any 
religious advantages, took his walk one Sunday morning in 
tlie fields near Chelsea ; and as he walked, he thought with 
himself — ^^What a happy fellow I am! I have an ample 
fortune, an affectionate wife, and everything to make me 
comfortable ; and I am not indebted to any one for it. I 
have made it myself; it's all my own; I am independent of 
every one. It's all my own, and I may do as I like with it." 

While thinking so, a summer shower fell, making it difficult 
to reach shelter ; and the only shelter which seemed available 
was a church. He went in, intending to go no further than 
the porch, never having been in any place of worship since he 
was married. A gentleman, however, sitting near the door, 
saw him, and coming out of his pew, invited him into it so 
politely that he could not resist, especially as the rain seemed 
likely to continue. 

The moment after he was seated, his attention was attracted 
to the clergyman, the Rev. John Owen, who was just 
announcing his text, Ye are not your own ; ye are bought 
with a price.'' 

*'What," thought he, "that's a strange doctrine. But it 
does not apply to me. I am my own, and all I have is my 
own." 

As the preacher proceeded, the rich man became interested, 
and after the service left the church with his mind deeply 
impressed. 

On reaching home he told his wife what had occurred, and 
asked for a Bible, to see if there was not something to qualify 



EEDEMPTION. 



265 



the text. But there was not a Bible in the house, for neither 
himself nor his wife nor any of the servants possessed one. 

The impression made upon his mind was so deep that he 
went to church again in the evening, and then it became still 
deeper. 

The next morning he went out early and bought a Bible, 
and returning, told his wife that he found the text quoted 
correctly ; there were the words, and the obligation was 
distinct and unqualified, " Ye are not your own,'' &c. 

iN'ext Sunday she accompanied him to the church ; and the 
result was that, under the Divine blessing, after a short time 
they were both led to acknowledge their obligation to God, 
which they had long neglected. They joined themselves to 
that congregation, and became exceedingly useful as earnest 
and zealous servants of the Lord. 

eedemptio:n". 

The bird set free. A gentleman in Ireland saw a boy 
who had caught a sparrow, which was trembling and panting 
in his hand, evidently much frightened. The gentleman told 
the boy to let it go free, but he had been chasing it for some 
time, and would not so readily give it up. The gentleman 
then offered to buy the bird, and the boy agreed to the price. 
The kind man took it and held it in his hand, where it sat 
for a time, as if not realizing that it was really free, and then 
flew away, chirping, as if to say, in the best way it could, 

You have redeemed me." 

The recovered farm. " Once," says Mr. Moody, " when 
I was revisiting my native village, I was going to a neigh- 
bouring town to preach, and saw a young man coming from 
a house with a waggon. In it was seated an old woman. I 
felt interested in them, and asked my companion who they 
were. I was told to look at the adjoining meadow and 
pasture, and at the great barns that were on the farm, as 
well as a good house. * Well,' said my companion, ' that 
young man's father drank it all up, and left his wife in the 



266 REFORMATORY AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS. 



poor-house. The young man went away and worked till he 
had got money enough to redeem the farm, and now it is his 
own, and he is taking his mother to church/ " 

Gratitude. A little boy about ten years old was bidden 
by his father to go and do some work in the field. He went 
as he was told, but took little pains about it, and made very 
slow progress in his task. By-and-by his father called to 
him kindly, and said, " AVillie, can you tell me how much 
you have cost me since you were born 1 " The father waited 
awhile, and then said, that he reckoned he must have cost 
him a hundred pounds." The boy opened his eyes, and 
wondered at hearing of such a sum. He seemed to see the 
hundred sovereigns all glittering before him, and in his heart 
determined to repay his father by doing all he could to please 
him ; — the reproof sank deeper into his heart than a hundred 
stripes. When I read the story, it occurred to me, " What 
have I cost my Saviour?'* Then I remembered the words, 
" Ye -were not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and 
gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb 
without blemish and without spot." 

God repented, it is said, when he made man ; but we 
never find that He repented that He had redeemed man. 

EEFORMATOEY AXD INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS. 

Sir Henry IMaine, in his ' Ancient Law,' has generalized the 
three stages through w^iich jurisprudence has passed, in this 
way. In the low^est and rudest state of society all punish- 
ment is purely vindictive. The wrong done is from one man 
to his fellow, and the right to retribution is purely personal. 
This is the law of lex taUonis — blood for blood. In the 
second stage, crime is regarded less as an off'ence against the 
person wronged than against society at large. Private revenge 
disappears, and " the majesty of the law " is not administered 
by the injured party for himself, but by the Judge appointed 
on behalf of the community. In the third and highest stage, 
crime is regarded less as an injury done to the State, than 



EEGENERATION-. 



267 



as a wrong done to the wrong-doer himself. The highest 
aim, therefore, is to reclaim the criminal. Yindictive in the 
first stage, and retributive in the second, the noblest effort 
01 all right punishment is to be reformatory. 

Prevention is better than cure. A prisoner was waiting 
for execution, and was visited by a number of Christian people, 
who wished to talk and pray with him. The man turned to 
one of them and said, " Ah, if you had taken half as much 
interest in me before I came to prison, as you have done 
since, I might never have been where I am now." How true ! 

By the report of the Inspectors for 1881, the number of 
children under detention was 23,693 ; viz., 19,037 boys and 
4656 girls. In 1881, the number of schools under inspection 
was 281, and the total cost of their maintenance was 
£482,602, of which sum £263,053 was contributed by the 
Treasury. The number of Reformatory schools alone in 
England is 50, and in Scotland 12. In these schools there 
were 5518 boys and 1220 girls. As to the effect of reform- 
atories, the report of the discharges for 1878, 1879^ and 1880, 
showed, that of the boys discharged, 76 per cent, were doing 
well ; 10 per cent, were doubtful or unknown; and 6 per cent, 
had been again convicted. The number of industrial schools 
was 133, with 16,955 scholars — by far the larger number being 
boys. The total income of these schools (including an allow- 
ance of £170,111 from the Treasury) was £345,494, and 
the expenditure, £342,658. 

EEGENEEATIOK 

" Grace does not pluck up by the roots, and whoUy destroy 
the natural passions of the mind, because they are distempered 
by sin. That were an extreme remedy, to cure by killing, 
and to heal by cutting off. JS'o ; but it corrects the distemper 
in them. It dries not up the main stream of love, but puri- 
fies it from the mud it is full of in its wrong course, and 
calls it to the right channel, by which it may run into happi- 
ness, and empty itself in the ocean of goodness " {Leighton), 



268 



REGENERATIOIT. 



" A man may work brass to great beauty and perfection, 
but no artificer can work it into gold. To change our natures 
must be the work of Omnipotence " {Cecil), 

" The change required to make us fit to enjoy heaven, is 
not that of the snake when it has cast his skin, and yet 
remains a reptile still ; it is the change of the caterpillar when 
it dies, and its crawling life ceases ; but from its body rises 
the butterfly, a new animal with a new nature" [Bishop 
Rtjle). 

To hew a block of marble from the quarry, and carve it 
into a noble statue ; to break up a waste wilderness, and turn 
it into a garden of flowers ; to melt a lump of ironstone, and 
forge it into watch-springs ; all these are mighty changes. 
Yet they all come short of the change which every child of 
Adam requires, for they are much the same thing in a new 
shape. But man requires the grafting in of that which he 
had not before ; he needs a change as great as a resurrection 
from the dead. He must become a new creature. He must 
be born again — born from above — born of God" (Bishop 
Ryle). 

'^In regeneration, the essential nature of man, his 
reason and understanding, are not taken away, but rectified. 
As a carver takes not away the knots and grain in the wood, 
but planes and smooths it, and carves the image of a man upon 
it, the substance of the wood remaining still; so God takes 
the rugged piece in a man's understanding and will, and 
engraves His own image upon it; but the change is so 
great that the soul seems to be of another species and kind, 
because it is acted upon by that grace which is another species 
from that principle which acted upon it before" {Charnock), 

A parent's example. Principal Harper, head of the 
Theological College for training students for the ministry 
for the United Presbyterian Church at Leith, when dying, 
had his family gathered around his bed. He beckoned to 
Mrs. Harper, and tried to say something, but could not. 
With much efi'ort she made out his dying wish. " Promise 



HEPENTANCE. 



269 



me," he said, that you will make the nature and necessity 
of regeneration the frequent subject of conversation with the 
family." Truly , a good promise to exact by a dying Christian 
father. 

EEPENTAITCE. 
I HAVE NOT WEPT ENOUGH." The slightest sorrow for sia 
is sufficient, if it lead to Christ and to amendment ; and the 
greatest is insufficient, if it does not. 

Different kinds of repentance. There may be repent- 
ance which is false — the sorrow of the world ; the repent- 
ance of disappointment, like that of Esau ; the repentance of 
fear, like that of Pharaoh ; the repentance of remorse, like 
that of Judas ; and there may be repentance which is right — 
the repentance of faith, like that of Job ; the repentance of 
hope^ like that of the Prodigal Son; the repentance of love, 
like that of Peter. 

Not sorrow only. Many persons ignorantly confound 
sorrow for sin with repentance ; but repentance without 
amendment is like pumping a ship to cast out the water, 
without stopping the leaks. 

He that does not repent of sin, goes far to justify it. 

Turning back. A gentleman was walking, one dark night, 
along a road in the slate country. He carried with him a 
lighted lantern, but thought he knew the road so well that 
he need not use it, though he kept it under his cloak. The 
wind was high and blustering, and a sudden gust blew his 
cloak aside, and the light of the lantern flashed upon the 
road before him. Very mercifully, it showed him that he 
was walking straight to the edge of a slate quarry. A few 
steps more, and he would have been hurled down and dashed 
to pieces in the pit below ! He began to retrace his steps, 
and turned back, till he came to the high road, keeping his 
lantern shining upon the ground ! An illufgtration of the 
light of truth, showing the sinner the danger he had not seen 
before, and leading him to turn back, till his feet are set 
upon the way of life. 



270 



REPORTS, CALUMNY. 



Must be to the end of life. Eepentance hatli a purify- 
ing power, and every tear is of a cleansing virtue ; but these 
penitential clouds must be still kept dropping ; one shower 
will not suffice ; for repentance is not one single action, but 
a course " (South), 

" Eepentance begins in the humiliation of the heart, and 
ends in the reformation of the life (Mason). 

March, April, and May. " Sin, repentance, and pardon 
are like the three vernal months of the year — March, April, 
and May. Sin comes in like March — blustering, stormy, 
and full of bold violence. Eepentance succeeds like April — 
showery, weeping, and full of tears. Pardon follows like 
May — springing, singing, full of joys and flowers. If our 
hands have been full of March, with the tempests of unright- 
eousness, our eyes must be full of April, with the sorrow of 
repentance ; and then our hearts shall be full of May, in the 
true joy of forgiveness " (Adams), 

He that hath tasted the bitterness of sin will fear to 
commit it ; and he that hath felt the sweetness of mercy will 
fear to offend it" (Clcarnock), 

EEPOETS, CALUMNY. 

The Eev. Charles Simeon laid down these rules for his 
o^vn guidance about hearing reports of others : 

1. To hear as little as possible, whatever is to the prejudice 
of others. 

2. To believe nothing of the kind, till I am absolutely 
forced to it. 

3. ITever to drink in the spirit of one who circulates an 
evil report. 

4. Always to moderate as far as I can the unkindness 
which is expressed towards others. 

5. Always to believe that, if the other side were heard, a 
very different version would be given of the matter. 

Mr. Simeon well adds : " I consider love as wealth ; and, 
as I should resist a man who should come and rob my house, 



EEPROOF. 



271 



so would I resist a man who would weaken my regard for 
any human being." 

EEPEOOF. 

"When Mk. "Wesley was on his voyage with General Ogle- 
thorp to Georgia, the General threatened revenge upon an 
offending servant, saying, never forgive." " Then I hope, 
sir," said Mr. Wesley, you never sin." The General felt 
the force of the rebuke, and modified his action towards the 
servant. 

Disliked. — " Lais broke her looking-glass because it 
showed the wrinkles on her face. Many men are angry with 
those who tell them their faults, when they should be angry 
with the faults that are told them " {yenning). 

The Eev. George Whitfield was once staying with a 
friend at an inn. They had gone to bed, but were soon dis- 
turbed by a dreadful noise in the house ; men were gambling 
' and swearing, and using fearful language. Mr. Whitfield 
said, " I must get up and speak to those wicked men ; they 
are swearing and talking so shamefully." He went down 
and reproved them ] but they only laughed at his words, and 
abused him. When he got back to his bedroom his friend 
said. Well, what did you get for your trouble It " Mr. 
Whitfield answered, liave got a soft xoillowJ^ 

EESOLUTIO^S. 

" When the sea is making a breach in the land, they 
fend it off by driving stakes, at some distance apart, into the 
beach. These stakes catch the weeds and the sand which 
the sea throws up against them, and thereby is formed an 
insurmountable barrier against further encroachment. So, 
by the grace of God, good resolutions and strenuous efforts 
may be made available against temptation. Habits are 
thereby form^ed, character consolidated, and successful 
resistance established " {Clergyman's Magazine), 



272 



EESPONSIBILIXr. 



eespo:n'sibility. 

''What does the word mean? It means ability to 
RESPOND. It is, in fact, not a burden, but a privilege ; not 
a hardship, but a grace. This is the literal meaning of the 
word. How glorious to the Christian ! For, if we take it 
in its spiritual signification, we find a beautiful truth. Each 
true call for our Master has implied within it a possibility of 
response to that call. In the seed of duty lies the blossom 
of that duty's fulfilment. So, whether we are told to rest or 
to work, to love or to labour, to be patient or to fight, to sit 
still or to run swiftly, the '• ability to respond is there. It 
is ours. Therefore let us love our responsibilities; let us 
rejoice in them " {Lady Hope), 

It was a frequent saying of jNIr. Drummond, often quoted, 
but not always remembered, " Property has its duties as well 
as its rights." 

What should we think of a surgeon who was possessed of 
the ability, and refused to act on behalf of a dying creature 1 
What would be our feelings at the man who knew a house to 
be on fire, and failed to give an alarm ] A Christian who is 
not working for God is worse than these. To him that 
knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin.'' 

EEST. 

Alabama. There is an ancient legend for the origin of 
this name. It is said an Indian went out with his followers 
to seek a place of settlement. After wandering some time, 
they found a beautiful plain, with a deep broad river, and 
the chief stuck his spear into the ground, crying, Alahama^ 
which means in their tongue, ''Here let us red ^ Alas! it 
was a vain hope. Yery soon another Indian tribe traced the 
new-comers in their infant settlement, and made a sudden 
attack upon them, killing many. Thus numbers who looked 
to find a new home, found nothing but a grave. 

Settled. We often speak (says one) of being " settled in 
life ; one might as well speak of casting anchor in the midst 



RESTRAINT RELAXED. 



273 



of the Atlantic ocean ; or talk of the permanent situation of 
a stone that is rolling downhill. Eest is for heaven ; toil is 
for earth. 

Through salvation. " The needle in the compass never 
stands still till it comes right against the north pole. The wise 
men of the East never stood still till they were right against 
the star which appeared unto them ; the star itself never stood 
still till it came against the other star, which shone more 
brightly in the manger than the sun did in the firmament. 
So the heart of man can find no rest till he comes to Christ." 

Eepos ailleurs. *'Eest elsewhere," was the motto of 
Philip de Marnix, Lord Sainte-Aldegonde, one of the most 
efficient leaders in the great ^Netherlands revolt against 
despotism in the sixteenth century, which supplied materials 
for perhaps the most momentous chapter in the civil and 
religious history of the world. For a man such as he. living 
in such a time, no motto could well mean more. A friend of 
freedom and truth in that age could never hope to find rest 
in this world. A good motto, also, is it for the Christian 
worker. When there is so much to be done, who would be 
inactive here 1 " Weary not in well-doing/' there is rest 
elsewhere. Ketire not from your labour. Work on ; there 
will be rest hereafter'* (Anon), 

Mr. McAll's great work in Paris began by his going for 
change and rest to Paris, from Hadleigh, where he was a 
pastor, and next year he exchanged Hadleigh, a small county 
town, for Paris, the grand city, and the glorious work which 
he carried on there has been well known. 

RESTEAIISTT EELAXED. 

" The Chinese have a proverb to the effect that if you 
keep a serpent in a bamboo, it remains straight ; but directly 
you let it out, it resumes its crooked nature. So it is with 
many men : they are placed in circumstances which act as 
a restraint upon them, and they seem to be walking right ; 
but take those restraints away, and they soon show by their 

t 



274 



EESTITUTION. 



lives that the nature of the old serpent is in them still" 
{John V, Bobson), 

EESTITUTION. 

One day, a girl in one of the mission schools in Africa 
went to the missionary's wife (Mrs. Ellis), and put four six- 
pences into her hand, saying, That is your money/' How 
so," was the answer, " you do not owe me anything ] '' " Yes, 
I do,'' she replied ; "I will tell you how. At the examination, 
you promised sixpence to the one in my class who wrote the 
best specimen on a slate. I gave in my slate, and got the 
sixpence, but another girl wrote that specimen for me. 
Yesterday you read about Zacchaeus, who said, ' If I have 
taken anything from any one wrongfully, I restore fourfold.' 
I took from you one sixpence; I restore you four." 

EESURRECTION. 

**OuR Lord/' says Luther, has written the promise of 
the resurrection not in books alone, but in every leaf in 
spring-time." 

The Jews call their burying-place Bdli-Chayim — -the house 
of the living — an evidence of their knowledge of the resur- 
rection of the dead. 

The Heathen sorrowed without hope. A shattered pillar; 
a ship gone to pieces ; a race lost ; a harp lying on the ground 
with snapped strings, with all its music lost; a flower-pot 
crushed, with all its fragrance scattered, — these were the sad 
utterances of their hopeless grief. The thought that death 
was the gate of life, came not to cheer the parting or brighten 
the sepulchre. The truth that the grave was the soil, and 
the body the seed, sown by God's hand to call out all the 
latent life ; that the race was not lost, but only a little earlier 
won ; that the column was not destroyed, but transferred 
to another building and another city, to be a pillar in the 
temple of God ; that the bud was not crushed, but transplanted 
for fuller expansion, and with all its odour unexhaled and 



EEVERENCE. 



275 



unimpaired to a kindlier soil and air ; that the harp was not 
broken, nor its music spoilt and lost, but handed to a truer 
minstrel, who with finer touch and heavenlier skill, will bring 
out all the rich compass of its hidden music, which men 
would not have appreciated, and which earth would have but 
spoiled, — these were things which had no place in their 
theology, hardly in their dreams. They sorrowed as those 
who had no hope " {H, Bonar), 

A FAMOUS Bedouin Sheik visited Beyroot, and asked 
permission to see the American printing press. He was 
shown the different parts of the building, the different 
processes of type-casting, setting, electrotyping, &c. He 
stood in mute wonder at the sight for some time, and then 
exclaimed, " Khowed ja ! — you Franks have conquered every- 
thing but death. In that respect only we all of us stand on 
a level, and death conquers all." "True,'' the missionary 
replied, " death does conquer us, but there is One who con- 
quered death for you and me — and he told the wondering 
chief of the glory of the Christian resurrection hope. 

EEYEEENCE. 

Egbert Boyle. It is recorded of the Hon. Eobert Boyle, 
that whenever in reading or speaking he came to the name 
of the Deity, he would always pause and pronounce it with 
the deepest reverence. 

In the year 1807, an old man, then seventy-two years of 
age, might have been seen walking through the streets of 
Gloucester, leaning upon the arm of a younger friend. As 
they reached a certain spot, the aged man stopped, stood still, 
uncovered his white head, and passed some moments in 
silent prayer. This venerable man was Eobert Eaikes. 
" There is the spot," he said, while tears rolled down his 
cheeks, **on which I stood when I saw the destitution of the 
children, and the desecration of the Sabbath by the inhabitants 
of the city. As I asked, ' Can nothing be done ? ' a voice 
said, * Try/ I did try, and see what God has wrought." 



276 



EEWARD PROPORTIONATE. 



EEWARD PROPOETIOJSTATE. 

" There are great rewards like jewels in a crown ; there 
are little rewards like diamond-dust : the great deed of love 
shall receive its great reward, and the little deed of love 
shall receive its measure too ; and so it shall be found here- 
after that nothing was forgotten " {Power). 

RICHES. 

Stephen Seward, when he was regarded as the richest 
man then living in New York, one day wrote to a friend : 
" As to myself, I live like a slave. I am constantly occupied 
all through the day, and often passing the night without 
being able to sleep. I am worn out with the care of my 
l^roperty. If I can only keep busy in the day, and sleep all 
night, this is my highest happiness." 

EoTHSCHiLD, the great millionnaire, it is said, seldom slept 
"without a pistol under his pillow. 

Grasping at both worlds. An ancient philosopher 
once asked a friend which he would rather be — Croesus, 
one of the richest men, but wicked ; or Socrates, one of the 
poorest, but virtuous. The man answered — in life he would 
rather be a Croesus, and in death a Socrates ! Thus it is with 
multitudes of men. In living they would have the luxuries 
of Dives, but in dying the happiness and convoy of angels 
that Lazarus had. In living they would indulge in the 
vanities and vices of the wicked ; but in dying would have 
Balaam's wish realized, and die the death of the righteous. 
But these two cannot be united. Living and dying go hand 
in hand together " {Bate). 

A Pushtu proverb is — " Wealth is a clifiTs shadow,'* i, e. 
always shifting. 

A Telegu proverb is — "Worldly prosperity is like 
writing on water." 

Bengel used to say — " Eiches are a tree growing on the 
bank of a river, luxuriant and green, but apt to be swept 
away by any unusual flooding of the tide.'* 



ROYALTY. 



277 



True riches. " I don't call that man ricli (says one) who 
has great wealth and nothing else ; gold and silver cannot 
make any man lastingly rich, because they must be left at the 
hour of death. I call that man rich who is rich for eternity. 
Death, so far from removing, increases his possessions ; there- 
fore he is rich who is * rich towards God.' " 

All for Christ. It was told to a Christian gentleman 
that such and such man was converted. The remark he 
made was, Is his purse converted " 

Suppose a worldly man's life could be prolonged indefinitely 
here on earth, what would he do 1 The chief pleasure with 
the majority of rich men is the chase in acquiring wealth. 
When that is over nature begins to tire ; the appetite has been 
satiated. A life prolonged in such a case would prove no real 
enjoyment. Men cannot churn happiness out of silver and gold. 

^* Let the fruition of things bless the possession of 
them, and take no satisfaction in dying but living rich : for 
since thy good works, not thy gold, follow thee ; since riches 
are an appurtenance of life, and no dead man is rich ; to 
famish in plenty, and live poorly and die rich, were a multi- 
plied improvement on madness, and a refinement in folly " 
(Sir Thomas Browne). 

" Wherefore doth the Lord make my cup to run over, 
but that other men's lips may taste the liquor % The showers 
that fall from the highest mountains should glide into the 
lowest valleys " (Seeker). 

^'K'ever treat money affairs with levity," says Bulwer. 
Money is char act er,^^ 

The world's riches bring care ; God's riches bring free- 
dom from care. 

EOYALTY. 

Uneasy is the head that wears a crown." The 
present century has seen fifty-eight attempts made upon the 
lives of sovereigns and presidents, of whom" nine have fallen 
by the assassin's hand. Paul II. of Eussia was the first, 



278 



KOYALTY. 



and Alexander of Eussia the last. Besides these, two 
emperors, Prince Charles of Parma, and Prince Michael of 
Servia, have been killed. The presidents have been six : 
Lincoln and Garfield, of the United States, and the Presidents 
of Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Paraguay. 

The AVERAGE LIFE of Kojal personages is shorter than that 
of the gentry and nobility of their kingdoms. 

Cost op royalty in England. What an enormous 
expense monarchy is is the cry of some radical complainers 
against our Constitution. Let us see. Mr. W. Eaulketall 
has drawn up a valuable statement, which brings the 
question to an issue. The Civil List for the English crown 
for 1882 3 stands at £385,000, and for the members of 
the Eoyal Family £170,000; together, £555,000. This 
looks a big sum. But it should be remembered that out 
of this sum there is to be deducted £390,000 paid into 
the Exchequer from estates, which are the property of the 
Crown in exactly the same sense that any other estate is the 
property of its owner. This leaves only £165,000 to be 
raised for the support of monarchy by the taxes. Now 
compare this with the cost of Eepublicanism. The United 
States have to pay for no King nor Queen. But they pay 
66 senators and 293 representatives a salary of £1000 a 
year each, and £3000 a year besides for travelling expenses. 
This gives £389,000 for the Senates and Congress alone ; 
besides which, each State has its paid Legislature, at a total 
cost of £350,700, exclusive of travelling expenses. Adding 
this to the cost of the Central Government, we have no less 
a sum than £739,700, all to come out of the taxes ; and the 
taxpayers have also the burden of several items extra, such 
as the payment of Government Commissioners. Is it hard 
to see, therefore, which costs more — the monarchy of England, 
or the republicanism of the United States ? In France the 
cost of Eepublicanism is put down for 1881 at £1^92,840 ; 
but senators and deputies are not satisfied with this ; and 
the latter have just had granted to them by way of instal- 



SABBATH. 



279 



ment, the privilege of travelling on any railway in the 
Empire free. 

The Tuilertes. " It is an historical fact that during the 
three hundred and fifty years in which the Palace of the 
Tuileries has been a royal dwelling, no French sovereign has 
died within its walls. In connection with this fact another 
may be mentioned. Ever since 1588, every French sovereign 
who has made the Tuileries his home, has been compelled at 
some time or other to quit the shelter of its roof " {Dr, 
Richardson), 

SABBATH. 

Sabbath facts for thankfulness, hopefulness, and sorroic : 

Sermons. What a solemn thought it is that every Lord's 
Day there are preached, in England and Wales alone, pro- 
bably not far short of 100,000 sermons, or in the whole of 
one year 5,200,000, to which must be added the number of 
sermons and lectures delivered through the week. Making a 
full allowance for erroneous teaching in the case of some, and 
of obscurity and dulness in the case of others, what a large 
amount of Scripture truth must still be brought forward in 
the pulpits of our favoured land, involving a fearful responsi- 
bility alike on preachers and on hearers. 

The prayers of God's people. It need not, it is hoped, 
be added, that God's house is the house of prayer." But 
no figures could register the number of prayers professedly or 
sincerely offered up from the lips of worshippers every Sunday 
to Him who hears and answers prayer ! And not in God's 
house only ; probably some of the most simple, powerful, 
and acceptable prayers that bring down real answers and 
sweet mercies, arise from sick-beds and lonely chambers — the 
prayers of God's " hidden ones,'* presented in secret, but 
answered openly ; or, if not always answered openly, yet in 
many a case abundantly. 

Sunday schools. One hundred years ago Eobert Eaikes 
founded Sunday schools. He said, at the opening of the 



280 



SABBATH. 



little school in Catherine Street, Gloucester : " It is a harm- 
less attempt, if it is productive of no good ; and it is meant 
to check the deplorable profanation of the Sabbath day." 
What fruit the seed then sown has produced ! There were, 
in 1882, in the United Kingdom, 4,615,453 Sunday scholars, 
with 500,369 Sunday school teachers. Throughout the world 
there are 12,107,312 Sunday scholars, with 1,425,233 
teachers. Who can tell the untold blessings which have 
arisen, and are arising, every Sunday from this noble army of 
voluntary and willing Christian labourers ! 

The honour paid in England to the Sabbath as a day 
of rest should be no less remembered. In the midst of all 
our Sabbath desecration, the day is still honoured in many 
ways, socially and publicly, apart from the religious observ- 
ance. "On that day the Legislature never meets ; all law 
courts are closed ; no writ in civil cases can be executed. In 
commercial matters Sunday does not count for settlement. 
Handicraft ceases. More than six-sevenths of our shops are 
closed. Public amusements are intermitted. The theatre, 
the music-hall, the scientific or art exhibition is closed. The 
rush of locomotion is decreased three-fourths. Railway trains 
sink from 36,750 to 8240; and taking the country as a 
whole, general quiet and repose falls upon the ordinarily busy 
masses of our population." — Di\ Gntton, 

The two most powerful and prosperous nations in the 
world — Great Britain and the United States — are the nations 
in which the Sabbath day is most honoured and observed. 

Many painful facts, on the other hand, cannot be 
forgotten in connection with the Sabbath. It is said, ninety 
per cent, of the working and artisan classes in our large towns 
never attend any place of worship. It is also calculated that 
£15,000,000 is spent in drink every Sunday. The Sunday 
newspapers have now reached a circulation of nearly 
30,000,000. There are more than 1,000,000 persons em- 
ployed in Sunday labour. The drink traffic employs 
300,000; the tobacconists about 100,000; our railways 



SABBATH. 



281 



about 90,000 ; the canals and river navigation, 100,000 ; the 
Post Office, 20,000 ; the telegraph, a large number ; cabs and 
omnibuses in London alone, 24,000 drivers. Moreover, we 
should take into account, in such enumerations, what these 
numbers represent besides the persons employed — the family 
influence also ! The 100,000 men engaged on our railways, 
e, g. represent families and households, in which some 500,000 
or more are concerned. 

About 8200 trains (including no less than 1500 goods and 
mineral trains) run every Sunday. 

Dr. Gritton, of the Lord's Day Society, made a most care- 
ful examination into the relative traffic of the principal 
railways in 1876, for England and Scotland, from which it 
appears that the total number of passenger trains in the week 
days was 18,816, and on Sundays 5537 ; and of goods trains 
on the week days 13,947, and on Sundays 1302. *^ Scotland 
has a far lower proportion of Sunday trains than England; 
those north of the Tweed being about one-twentieth of the 
week day trains, while in England the Sunday trains are 
about one-third of those of the week days. This touches 
passenger traffic. In Scotland the Sunday goods trains are 
about one-seventeenth of the weekly number, and in England 
about one-tenth. Taking England and Scotland togefther, 
and combining the passenger and goods returns, it seems that 
the traffic on the Lord's Day is about one-sixth of the whole 
traffic of the week day." 

Nearly 150,000 shops are open for several hours on the 
Lord's Day, for the sale of intoxicating drinks. 

The number of Sunday excursionists it is difficult to ascer- 
tain, always entailing on the railway servants heavy labour, 
and on the places visited terrible demoralization. Dr. Gritton 
estimated the number of excursionists to Eamsgate alone by 
the South-Eastern Company, and the London, Chatham, and 
Dover trains in the four summer months a few years ago to 
have been about 65,000. Sixty-five thousand Sunday excur- 
sionists for one seaside town in four months ! 



282 



SABBATH. 



Eetribution. a correspondent of the Lord's Day Work- 
ing Men's Eest Association wrote in 1882: "I have some- 
thing to say about Sunday work. 1st. During the construc- 
tion of the Yeovil and Exeter Eailway the contractor's men 
were at work every Sunday. The railway was completed 
and ready for opening, when a few days before the opening a 
thunderstorm came and destroyed a number of bridges, and 
delayed the opening for some months. 2nd. I and my men 
worked several Sundays and completed our contract (engin- 
eering) in time, but although we were ready on the opening 
day, we had an accident to repair, which took exactly cts 
many days (week days) as we had icorked Sundays, I took 
particular notice of this, from certain facts that had come 
before me during my apprenticeship, when men were working 
in cotton mills on Sundays in Manchester, and my opinion 
was then formed, and nothing will alter it, that nothing is 
gained by either loorking or taking pleasnre on the Sabbath,'* 

Crossing the Rocky Mountains. — The Kev. William 
Taylor of California, in a letter to Mr. C. Hill, Secretary of 
the Working INfen's Lord's Day Eest Association, gave the 
following valuable testimony in favour of the Sabbath : 
''During the years 1849 and 1850 upwards of 50,000 persons 
crossed the American continent on their way to California, a 
distance of upwards of 2000 miles. For safety and protec- 
tion they travelled in companies of 500 or 1000 persons. 
Some of these companies travelled seven days a week, some 
rested on the Lord's Day, and it was invariably found that 
those who only travelled six days a week got to their journey's 
end several weeks earlier and in much better condition than 
those who travelled seven days a week." 

The pleasure-party. — A clerical friend of the author of 
this book told him the following case, which occurred in his 
parish. Fanny Turner, a young girl in one of the upper 
classes of the Sunday school, gave much promise to her 
teacher. But unhappily she had an evil companion, who 
sought to entice her to go for an excursion upon the Thames. 



SABBATH. 



283 



instead of attending tlie Sunday school as usual. At first 
the proposal was met with a decided negative ; but by the 
urgent persuasion of her false friend, she was unhappily per- 
suaded to give way. The teacher, a kind Christian lady, 
heard of it, and most earnestly warned her of the sin, and 
besought her to refuse ; and at last failing, said with emotion, 
" Well, if you will go, may my words follow you. ' If sinners 
entice thee, consent thou not.' " They started on one of the 
23enny steamboats on the Thames, which was to bring them 
back at night. They spent all the day pleasuring, as they 
had planned, and came back in the evening. When nearly 
at the end of the journey something went wrong with the 
steamboat, and the passengers became very anxious. In the 
fright caused by this alarm, Fanny Turner was seized with a 
fit and became alarmingly iU. Four policemen had to carry 
her off the boat. She was taken to some lodgings near, and 
became worse, and after a short illness died, and the last 
words she uttered were : " If sinners entice thee, consent 
thou not." There were no signs of repentance or of hope 
in her death. 

The Pilgrim Fathers. How much the observance of the 
Sabbath has an influence on the well-being of nations, may be 
illustrated by the example of the Pilgrim Fathers. ^'Driven 
from their own country by bitter persecutions, the Pilgrim 
Fathers, on the 6th of September, 1620, set sail in the 
Mayfloicer, on a perilous voyage across the Atlantic in search 
of a land where they could worship God according to the 
dictates of their own conscience. Sturdy, solemn, deter- 
mined men w^ere those persecuted Puritans. The word of 
God was their constant companion. It was a 'lamp to their 
feet, and a light to their path.* The shocking profanation of 
the Sabbath in their own country had led them to its rigid 
observance. The first Simday they spent in N^ew England 
was the 24th of December, 1620. They had been busy the 
day before cutting w^ood for their huts, and although it was 
the depth of winter, and they had no roof to cover them, 



284 



SABBATH. 



those noble men spent the whole of their first Sabhath as a 
day of rest, free from toil, and in the worship of God. On 
that first Sabbath in their adopted country they laid the 
foundation of its future greatness ; they inaugurated a prin- 
ciple which has helped to make the United States one of the 
grandest and most prosperous nations in the world." 

A WOMAN neglected to send home some work on Saturday. 
On Sunday morning she told her little niece to take it to the 
lady's house. Put it under your shawl," she said, " and 
nobody will notice if " But, aunty," said the child, " isn't 
it Sunday under my shawl] " 

A NOBLE EXAMPLE. At a meeting of several thousands of 
the workmen of London, in Exeter Hall, not long ago, the 
following striking incident was told with thrilling elfect by 
Edward Corderoy, Esq., one of the liighly esteemed merchants 
of the metropolis : — 

" I knew a man once who honoured the Sabbath Day. He 
was the manager of large works for a Government contractor, 
and had to pay some hundreds of men on a Saturday night. 
I think it was a time when, by a change in the coinage, some 
temporary works were required in haste (I was but a child 
then). His employer told him, he must work on Sunday, 
and have his men in the yard. * Sir,' replied he, * I will 
work for you till twelve o'clock on Saturday night, but I dare 
not work on the Sabbath. I have a higher Master to serve.' 
* George,' said the master, * my back is not so broad as yours, 
but I will bear the blame.' His foreman told him, * There is 
a day coming when each must give an account for himself ; ' 
and firmly, but respectfully, he declined to work on the 
Sabbath. 

''Yet that man was but a servant ; he had a wife and six 
children. Had he lost his situation, he had nothing but his 
character and his skill as a workman to sustain him. You 
would say, ' yes, he had far more j he had the blessing of 
the God of the Sabbath ! ' 

*' The Sabbath morning came : who that witnessed the 



4* 



SABBATH. 285 

sight could ever forget it 1 The men assembled and went to 
work under other orders than those they were accustomed to 
receive. This good man assembled his family ; the Scriptures 
were read, prayer was offered, the frugal meal was despatched, 
and then father and mother and the six children left the 
yard (for they all lived on the premises) in the sight of the 
assembled workmen, and walked solemnly to the house 
of God. 

^'I thank God that tJiat working man was my father, 
" The situation was not lost ; the God-fearing working man 
was all the more honoured and trusted because of his religious 
consistency. He closed the eyes of his employer, when the 
friends of more prosperous times had nearly all forsaken him. 
The family my father served consisted of four brothers, the 
eldest of whom was buried with honours in Westminster 
Abbey. My father attended the funeral of the youngest in 
an ordinary graveyard, and none were found to erect a tomb- 
stone ! 

" My friends, whatever of prosperity has been vouchsafed 
to my brothers and to myself, I unhesitatingly attribute, under 
God, to that honoured father's instruction and example, who 
would not break the commandment to ^ Keep holy the 
Sabbath Day.^ " 

The Eev. J. B. Figgis, at a Conference in Glasgow, speak- 
ing of the importance of decision on the right side, gave an 
illustration : — A fellow-student of his, now a physician, is 
in the habit of not only giving a tenth of all his fees to the 
Lord's work, but to devote to the same purpose every fee 
that comes to him for service rendered on the Lord's day. 
One Saturday evening he was sent for to attend a case, and 
was engaged in it into the Sunday. He received £100 as 
his fee, and the question arose whether the amount should 
go into the family purse or the Lord's purse. His wife 
argued, that if there was any doubt about it, he had better 
be on the right side, and the whole £100 was given to the 
promotion of God's cause." 



286 



SABBATH. 



The hills of refreshment. Our life throngh the week 
is like dwelling in the midst of the fogs and damps of the 
valley. Our Sabbaths should be hills of light and joy where 
we breathe a purer air. We hear in India and Ceylon of the 
inhabitants overcome by the heat of the summer going up to 
the hills for a change ; so we look upon our happy Sundays 
as times of refreshing," and the higher we rise the purer 
the air we breathe. 

WiLHELM VON HuMBOLDT Well Said that the future of our 
nation depended upon the observance of the Sabbath. 

A STRIKING CONTRAST. Alexander Mc Arthur, Esq., M.P. 
for Leicester, delivered a powerful speech in the House of 
Commons, May 19th, 1882, on the question of opening 
[Museums, &c., on the Lord's Day. He gives a striking 
illustration : — 

Honourable members are aware that until very recently 
there were large tracts of country in Australia that had never 
been explored. Numerous attempts were made to map the 
continent and to ascertain the nature of those unknown 
regions, and there were many failures and some loss of life. 
A short time before I left the colony, some eighteen or 
twenty years ago, an attempt was made which it was hoped 
would prove successful, and one of the strongest parties ever 
organized for the purpose left IMelbourne under peculiarly 
favourable circumstances. Camels were imported ; a suffi- 
cient number of men and horses were secured : the leaders 
were men of great energy and considerable scientific attain- 
ments ; ample stores were collected, and every provision was 
made to preserve the health and lives of the party. But the 
leader made a great and fatal mistake. He paid no regard 
to Sunday as a day of rest, although he rested occasionally 
on week-days. I will not detain the House by entering 
into details. It is sufficient to state that I believe all the 
animals and all the men, except one man, perished, and he 
was rescued to tell the melancholy tale after having been 
some weeks or months with the aborigines, who treated him 



SABBATH. 



287 



kindly, and assisted him to eke out life by getting and eating 
a kind of wild com or grain called nardoo by the natives. 
Well, sir, we have, I am happy to say, an illustration of a 
different kind. A few years after the time to which I have 
just alluded, another exploring party was organized to start 
for Queensland — I think from the Gulf of Carpentaria. 
It was all well arranged and ably conducted, but the 
leader, Mr. Landesbro, adopted what proved to be sounder 
policy. He set out with the determination not to travel on 
the Sunday, unless compelled to do so to reach water, or 
owing to some necessity ; and it is impossible to read the very 
interesting report of the expedition without being struck with 
the very different policy pursued and the different result. 
I have already stated the sad result of the expedition con- 
ducted by Burke and Wills, and I believe I am correct in 
saying that Mr. Landesbro and his party traversed the same 
desolate country without the loss of man or beast. It is just 
possible circumstances may have been more favourable for 
them in some respects, although I have never seen this stated, 
but I think the reasonable probability is that had Burke 
and Wills given themselves and their men and cattle the 
regular rest of the Sunday, that the lives of those brave and 
energetic men might have been saved.'' 

A GOOD EXAMPLE. When the Shah of Persia was in Eng- 
land, he sent to an eminent photographer to have himself 
and suite taken, and requested the photographer to wait upon 
him on Sunday. To the honour of the photographer, it is 
said, he returned word that he could not attend on the 
Lord's Day. A second message came from the Shah, stating 
that he was not accustomed to be refused, and that if the 
man did not come he must lose the honour and the profit, 
and some other person would be called in. A second time the 
same answer was returned, that Sunday was a sacred day — 
a day of rest — and that though he would be most happy 
to wait upon the Shah the first thing on the Monday morn- 
ing, he would not violate the day of rest. How difi'erent 



288 



SAILORS. 



was the testimony given in this case to the impression made 
upon strangers too frequently ! A New Zealand chief, who 
had become a Christian in his own land, paid a visit to 
England not long ago. He came full of expectation, to watch 
the habits of a Christian nation, from which the missionaries 
to his own country had been sent out. On his arrival in 
London, nothing astonished him so much as to see the vast 
number of shops open on Sunday, and to see people buying 
and selling on the Lord's Day as on any other day. 

SAILORS. 

" The sea," says Smiles, " has nursed the most valorous of 
men. The life of a mariner is one of patience, courage, and 
watchfulness/^ 

The Queen's idea of a good sailor may be judged of from 
the conditions laid down by Her Majesty for the prize given 
by her to the marine boys : Cheerful submission to superiors, 
self-respect and independent character, kindness and protec- 
tion of the weak, readiness to forgive offences, and a desire 
to conciliate the differences of others ; and, above all, fearless 
devotion to duty and unflinching truthfulness/' 

Sir Humphrey Gilbert, who, with Sir Walter Raleigh, 
first (after Cabot) visited ]N'ewfoundland,is often remembered 
for his last words. After having landed on the coast, and 
taken possession of the country in the name of their Sovereign, 
they sailed away in search of fresh adventures. But the sea 
became rough and troubled, and Sir Humphrey, on board the 
smallest vessel in the little fleet, was entreated to take safety 
on a larger ship. He refused. We are as near heaven by 
sea as by land," was his answer, calm and steadfast in his 
appointed place. The sequel of the story was sad ; soon 
after, the ship went down, while all on board were lost. 

The number of our British sailors stands now (1883) : In 
the Royal ^avy, 270 ships, 60,000 officers and men. In the 
merchant service, 38,616 ships, 358,158 officers and men ; be- 
sides bargemen, fishermen, &c., 250,000 ; altogether, 668,158. 



SALT. 



289 



From the most reliable statements, says tlie ^ Times/ it 
appears that the number of British and foreign vessels that 
entered inwards and cleared ontwards, to and from ports of 
the United Kingdom in 1881, including their repeated 
voyages, was 668,000, representing a tonnage of 134,079,623, 
and carrying on board at different times probably between 
three and four millions of persons. 

It is computed 200,000 sailors enter London every year. 

In 1879, above 4000 deaths occurred in the merchant 
service, of which 3000 were from accidents. 

The Breton prayer. The Breton sailors, it is said, have 
a prayer they are wont to use when they put to sea : Keep 
me, God ; my boat is so small, and thy ocean is so wide." 

Yarmouth. The fishermen engaged in the herring fisherj 
around the coast of ]N'orfolk have, for some years, met at the 
parish church before going out to sea, to ask the Divine 
blessing and protection — an example worthy to be followed. 

Sailors' homes are now happily established in all the 
important seaports of the United Kingdom, and in other 
parts of the world. Perhaps one of the largest is now in 
l^ew York, of which the lately reconstructed building is said 
to be unsurpassad by any similar institution in the world. 
The Home was first opened in 1842, and since that time 
nearly 1160 men have been received into it, and the amount 
of money saved and remitted to the relatives of the sailors 
has been more than 1| millions of dollars, or ^300,000 
sterling. The Institution, at its own expense, provides for 
shipwrecked mariners, and besides these temporal advantages, 
has daily meetings for prayer, temperance lectures, &c. 

SALT. 

The saltness of the sea is one great element of its use- 
fulness in the economy of nature. (See Sea.) 

If all the salt of the sea Avere collected together, and could 
be spread over the entire globe, it wpuld .form a layer more 
than ten yards deep (Jules Verne). 

V 



290 



SALVATIO^T. 



"It is a well-known natural law that lakes without outlets 
gradually become salt. This is one of the tliree causes of the 
saltness of the Dead Sea. The river Jordan, for thousands 
of years, has been pouring at least 6,000,000 tons of fresh 
water every day into the lake, and it has never lost its 
saltness" {Rev. J. W, Bardsley), 

What an illustration this presents of many, into whose 
greedy coffers vast stores of money seem always pouring, and 
yet there is no outlet of love and charity, and they lose the 
blessing they might have had 1 

Its cheapness. One of the things to be thankful for in 
the present day is the cheapness of articles essential to life 
and health. In the early part even of the present century, 
salt was taxed to forty times its cost, which made it so dear 
that the poor could scarcely afford it. 

SALVATION 

From Christ alone. "The bankrupt who asks a bank- 
rupt to set him up in business again is only losing time. 
The pauper who travels off to a neighbour pauper, and begs 
him to help him out of his difficulties, is only troubling him- 
self in vain. The prisoner does not beg his fellow-prisoner 
to set him free. The shipwrecked sailor does not call on his 
shipwrecked comrade to place him safe on shore. Help in 
all these cases must be sought from some other quarter. 
Eeader, it is just the same in the matter of cleansing away 
your sins. So long as you seek it from man, whether man- 
ordained, or man-unordained, you seek it where it cannot be 
found" (Bishop Ryle), 

" Whosoever." " I thank God for that word, * whosoever.* 
If God had said there was mercy for Eichard Baxter, I am 
so vile a sinner that I would have thought He meant some 
other Eichard Baxter; but when He says, * Whosoever,* I know 
that includes me, the worst of all Eichard Baxters " {Baxter), 

" The recognition of sin is the beginning of salvation 
(Luther) » 



SALVATION. 



291 



For all. " The Gospel river of life does not branch out 
into divers streams. There is not a broad sweep of waters 
for the rich, the intellectual, and the cultivated, and a little 
scant rivulet where the poor may now and then come and 
get healed, by the side of its precarious wave. There is no 
costly sanatorium, beneath whose shade patrician leprosy 
may get by itself to be fashionably sprinkled and cured. 
^N'aaman, with all his retinue watching, must come and strip 
and plunge like a common man in Jordan. There is no sort 
of salvation except the one ransom and deliverance that is 
purchased for rich and poor together, by the sacrifice of the 
Lord J esus Christ ; and the poor beggar, his garment ragged 
from the havoc of a hundred storms, and his flesh bleeding 
from the ulcers of a hundred wounds, may dip eagerly at the 
same Bethesda, and emerge unscathed and comely as a child " 
{Punslion). 

The DEATH-BED OP AN OLD GYPSY IS thus recorded by one 
of the missionaries to that singular race : 

I hope to go to heaven," said an old man. " I've given 
lip my bad ways, and been very good to the Lord." His 
conscience had been awakened by hearing his grandson 
reading the Bible in the camp. 

" What about your old sins ? asked the missionary. 

" I'm wiping them off, sir, by degrees." 

God's way of salvation was then simply set forth to him. 
A few weeks passed, and he was taken ill ; the missionary 
visited him, and read John iii. 16, 17. Tears began to roll 
down the old man's cheek as he said : 

'*Them be good words, sir; they make my heart glad. 
Eead them again, sir." 

He recovered sufficiently to be taken in a cart, with his 
tribe, to the Kent hop-picking ground. Soon the missionary 

received a message — " Old L is dying ; come and see 

him." He was l}ang in a tent, on the bare ground, a bundle 
of stones for his pillow. He could not speak, but his face 
expressed perfect peace. He pointed to the blue sky through 

u 2 



292 



SALVATION. 



the opening in the tent, as if to say, I^m going there ; " 
and as we prayed, he passed away. 

The two great parts of. '*Like other things that are one 
in the aggregate, this one thing consists of many parts. My 
hand, for instance, is one, yet it is furnished with five fingers. 
This hody is one, yet it has many organs. The Nile, or the 
Ganges, is one river, but one which is fed by many tributaries, 
and disgorges its waters into the sea by the channels of many 
mouths. A tree is one vegetable form, but one that below 
has many roots, and above has many branches ; and even so 
— to leave the other figures, and select the last — is that 

• Tree of Life,' which has Christ for the root, and for its fruit 
holiness and heaven. I have seen a tree, often rising in a 
single stem, divide itself into two great boughs, which after- 
wards divided and subdivided into innumerable branches, 
spread out their foliage, and drink in the air, and light, and 
dew, and heat of heaven. Thus it is with the scheme of 
redemption. The subject presents itself to us under two 
grand divisions : First, the remission or pardon of sin ; and 
secondly, the renewal of the soul. While salvation is the 
one thing needful, the two things needful to it are sin 
pardoned and the soul renewed. For suppose that your sins 
were pardoned, but that your heart remained in its corrup- 
tion ; the door of heaven remains shut; because * without 
holiness no man shall see the Lord ' ; because ' there shall in 
no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatso- 
ever worketh abomination or maketh a lie, but they which 
are written in the Lamb's book of life.' Then again, although 
your hearts were renewed, unless your sins were pardoned, 
that door remains shut, because of the righteous sentence, 

* The soul that sinneth, it shall die.' The door of heaven is 
guarded with jealous care, and like that of some treasure 
chest or beleaguered citadel, is barred by these two strong 
bolts. Both bolts must be drawn before we enter into glory. 
"We must be pardoned as well as renewed, and renewed as 
well as pardoned " (Z>r. (ri^^/inV). 



SAVINGS^ EAIS^KS. 



293 



SAYIIS^GS* BANKS. 

The first savings^ bank was started "by Miss Priscilla 
Wakefield, in the parish of Tottenham, Middlesex, towards 
the close of last century. Her object was to stimulate the 
frugality of poor workmen and domestic servants. The 
experiment proved so successful, that in 1799 the Eev. 
Joseph Smith, of Wendover, commenced the plan of receiving 
small sums from his parishioners during summer, and return- 
ing them at Christmas, with the addition of one-third, as an 
incitement to prudence and forethought. In 1810, the Rev. 
Henry Duncan, of Euthwell, Dumfriesshire, carried on the 
plan, and the savings' bank system became fairly inaugurated. 
These were the days of small things, but institutions of 
this kind soon multiplied, and a Bill was introduced into the 
House of Commons by Mr, Whitbread, to make use of the 
Post Office machinery to extend the work ; though matters 
were scarcely ripe for this then. In 1817 the first Act was 
passed, authorizing the formation of savings' banks upon 
certain conditions. In 1817, at the end of the first year, the 
amount due to depositors was £231,000. In 1831, it rose 
to £15,000,000, and thirty years after, in 1861, it reached to 
£42,000,000. By that time, the proposal to make use of the 
Post Office for facilitating the employment of the savings of 
the people, acquired more force from the failure of some of the 
savings' banks, and the suggestion made by Mr. Whitbread 
was taken up in earnest. In 1860, Mr. Gladstone laid before 
Parliament the plans which became the basis of the present 
system. For a short time, the old savings' banks suffered from 
the new competitor. But they speedily recovered, and now, 
whilst the Trustees' Savings' Banks have an amount as large 
as ever, or £42,000,000; the Post Office Savings' Banks 
have already in hand £25,000,000, making in all about 
£67,000,000. 

There are no means of ascertaining the class of persons to 
whom these deposits really belong. The probability is that 
not an inconsiderable portion of such savings belong to the 



294 



SCANDAL. 



middle classes. But taking two-thirds of the whole as belong-* 
ing to the working classes, the sum to their credit would be 
£45,000,000. Besides which there is a large amount in- 
vested in banks which belong to churches, Sunday schools, 
and other societies, which would form a very handsome sum 
in addition, and it may be added, that of the working 
classes, known as such, it is not generally those who receive 
the largest wages who invest the largest sums, but generally 
quite the reverse. Domestic servants, private soldiers, and 
some of the poorest of the wage-earning classes, are the chief 
investors. Private soldiers are paid less than the lowest 
workmen, yet they put more money into the banks than 
many who are earning thirty or forty shillings a week. 

The first Penny Bank was started in Greenock, about thirty 
years ago, as an auxiUary to the savings' banks, by Mr. J. M. 
Scott, and followed up by the Eev. Mr. Queckett, a curate in 
the east end of London, with great success. 

A COMPARISON was published some time ago of the invest- 
ments in the savings' bunks in different countries in Europe. 
It w^as stated that in 1874 the rate was, in England, 
£'2 7s. Sd. a head; Scotland, £1 Us. 3d.', Ireland, ll6-. ; 
Prance, 96\ lOc^ ; Holland, 5s. 4d ; Austria, £1 IQs. id; 
Germany, £1 175. ; Switzerland, £4 is. ; Italy, I6s. 6d. ; — 
but such statements are to be received with caution, as to the 
saving propensities of difi'erent nations. In Prance money 
is invested in many other ways. 

SCAKDAL. 

At a school examination, the children came to the wor>l 
scandal ; and the inspector stopped to inquire who knew the 
meaning of the word. Silence ensued, till a bright-eyed 
child held up her hand. Please, sir, scandal is, when 
nobody does nothing, and everybody goes and talks about 
it ! " 

"Suspect a tale-bearer," says one; "and never trust him 
with thy secrets, who is fond of eiitertaining thee with 



SCIENCE. 



295 



anotlier's. !N'o wise man will put good liquor into leaky 
vessels." 

SCIENCE. 

" We glory in the conquests of science, but we look ujDon 
science as merely an agent. Science may be a botanist, but 
who started the vital fluid in the veins of the herb and flower'? 
Science may be a geologist, but who wrote the rock-covered 
page, w^hose hieroglyphics she would translate] Science 
may be an astronomer, but who built the worlds 1 Who pro- 
jected the comets, whose mysterious paths she traces Science 
may be an agriculturist; she may open the earth's breast and 
cast in most precious seed; but if the fountains of dew be 
stayed, science herself may die of thirst. Be it observed 
then, that science is an agent and not a cause, and that while 
we rejoice in its agency, we are bound to acknowledge the 
goodness and mercy of the infinite intelligence " {D)\ 
Parker). 

Its use. " Human sciences are like gas-lights in the streets. 
They serve our purposes only while the heavens are dark. 
The brighter the sky, the more dim and useless they become. 
When noontide floods the town, they are buried though they 
burn. InTo sooner will the sun of absolute truth break on the 
firmament of our souls, than all the lights of our poor logic 
shall go out; knowledge, it shall vanish away" (Dr. 
Thomas). 

— AND religion. Bishop Ellicot spoke some telling words 
when presiding at a meeting of the British and Foreign Bible 
Society, at Gloucester, a short time ago. Speaking of the pre- 
valent danger of the present day, he said : " The conflict is not 
between true religion and true science ; there never had been, 
and there never would be, any conflict between these. The 
God of the Bible is the God of ISTature. Where tlie contro- 
versy lay, is between those opinions which man had himself 
assunied to be in God's Word, and the conclusions w^hich an 
over-hasty science had said to be approved and verified thereby. 



296 



SCOFFING. 



JS'^ow, however, there is a far better and more reverent state 
of things showing itself in the Church of Christ ! 

SCOFFING. 

A COOL REPLY was given by an agent of the Bible Society, 
to a party of sailors in a port in the west of England, 
amongst whom some Bibles had been distributed. A notorious 
scoffer taunted him with the worthlessness of his work, and 
in proof, held up a Bible which he said he had bought from 
one of the sailors for a glass of rum. The agent had just before 
been expressing his conviction that the Bibles would fall into 
the right hands. When the scoffer held up the Bible vaunt- 
ingly in his hands, the missionary said, Well, I'm glad it 
has come to you, for I know no one who wants it more.'* 

SCEIPTURES. 

Tried and proved. " The Bible has passed through the 
furnace of persecutions, literary criticism, philosophic doubts, 
and scientific discovery, and has lost nothing but those human 
interpretations which cling to it, as alloy to precious ore. Tlie 
experience of saints has tried it in every conceivable manner, 
but not a single doctrine or promise has been consumed in 
the most excessive heat. What God's words are, the words 
of His children should be. If we w^ould be God-like in con- 
versation, we must watch our language, and maintain the 
strictest purity of integrity and holiness in all our com- 
munication (Spiirgeon). 

The need of the Holy Spirit's teaching. Scripture can 
only be rightly understood by the illumination of the Holy 
Spirit. As, were we in a room hung with the finest paint- 
ings, and adorned with the most exquisite statues, what 
pleasure could w^e derive if light were excluded 1 The most 
correct account and description of the sun cannot convey the 
light, the warmth, the cheerfulness, or the fruitfulness, which 
the shining of the sun alone can convey; neither can the 
most laboured dissertation on Gospel truth impart a true 



SCRIPTURES. 



297 



idea, or coiiYey the full benefit of it, without the work of the 
Holy Spirit upon the heart." 

" The Scriptures/' says Flavel, " teach us the best way of 
living, the noblest way of suffering, and the most comfortable 
way of dying.'' 

The telescope and microscope. " The Word is a telescope, 
to discover the great luminaries of the world, the truth of 
highest concernment to the souls of men ; and it is no less 
a microscope, to discover to us the smallest atom of our 
thoughts, and discern the most secret intent of the heart. 
And, as far as the light reacheth, it comes with power and 
authority, as it comes armed with the majesty of that God 
who reveals it, whose authority extends over the soul and 
conscience of man in his most secret and hidden recesses " 
{StilUngfleet), 

" If there were no other proof of the Divine authority of 
the Holy Scriptures than the hatred that the devil, the Pope, 
and his swarm, have to them, that would be sufficient 
evidence" {Luther), 

" A careless reader of the Scriptures never yet made a 
close walker with God." 

" The Bible contains the maxims of heaven in human 
language" (Monod), 

" The Bible is a sacred book. It is God's angel, either 
hospitably lodged or rejected in our homes " (Dr, J. Hamilton). 

Bible and science. The present century has been a 
nervous time for imposture ; it has been a noble time for the 
Bible. Every fresh discovery has been a new leaf to its 
laurel, a new gem for its coronet " (Z)r. J". Hamilton), 

The value of. " A traveller was one day wandering on 
the seashore, in Brazil. He saw a pretty little cottage, and 
the master asked him to come in. While he was sitting and 
talking with him, he saw a large Bible on the table. He 
asked the man where he got it. He said, * It was given me 
by a sailor eight years ago, and I am very fond of reading it. 
But the worst is, it is scarcely ever at liome^ 'How is 



298 



SCRIPTURES. 



that 1 ' asked the traveller. He said, * My neighbours love 
to read it, and so they are often borrowing it of me ; I have 
let it go to places far and near ; but now it is at home I think 
I shall part with it no more.' 

The sword of the Spirit. Whom did God choose to 
make the first part of the Bible] Moses. He wrote the 
first five books, so I think we may say he made the handle. 
Then there were Joshua, and Samuel, and those men who 
wrote the books of Chronicles and Kings, and David and 
Solomon, and the Prophets, from Isaiah to Malachi. We 
will say that they made the hlade of the sword. But who 
made the point, and who made the sharp edge ] I think we 
may say that the Evangelists an?l Apostles, who wrote the 
iN'ew Testament, did these last things ; for the Old Testament 
would not be so very usefid to us without the New, even as 
the handle and blade of the sword would not be of so much 
use to a soldier, if there was not also the point, and the sharp 
keen edge " {American Writer), 

EoBERT ISToBLE. " This faithful servant of God was, in 
early life, at a boarding-school, and his sister was starting on 
her route for Africa, being married to a missionary working 
in the dark continent. Passing through the town where her 
brother was at school, she had time, whilst the coach was 
changing horses, to run to the house ; and finding her brother 
in the early morning, she greeted him with a sisterly kiss and 
a loving ' good-bye.' Then hastily leaving the room,, as a 
parting word, she said, * Eobert, read your Bible ; read your 
Bible.' Forty years after, a missionary in India was entering 
into rest. He had done a glorious work for Christ among the 
high caste lads, and now he was near the end. A brother 
missionary was by his bedside, and put to him a question. 

* I have heard that your sister's last wish for you led you to 
read the Bible. Is this true % ' ^ Yes,' said the dying man, 

* she told me to read the Bible, and I've done it — I've done 
it.' None can tell the rich fruit of that Bible study, nor the 
number of Hindoo youths to whom it became a priceless 
boon" {Rev. G. Everard). 



SEA. 



299 



SEA. 

The salts contained in sea- water, and to which it owes 
its peculiar bitter and unpleasant taste, form about three and 
a half per cent, of its Aveight, and consist principally of 
common table salt (chloride of sodium), and the sulphates 
and carbonates of magnesia and lime. But, besides these 
chief ingredients, there is scarcely a single elementary body 
of Avhich traces are not to be found in that universal solvent. 
Wilson has pointed out fluoric combinations in sea-water; 
and Malaguti and Durocher Annales de Chimise,' 1851) 
detected lead, copper, and silver in its composition. Tons of 
this precious metal are deposited in the vast volume of the 
ocean, and it contains arsenic sufficient to poison every living 
thing" {Hartivig on ' The Sea^). 

Freshwater springs. It is a curious fact that in many 
parts of the ocean fresh water springs burst from the bottom 
of the sea. Thus in the Gulf of Spezzia, and in the port of 
Syracuse, large jets of fresh water mingle with the brine ; 
and Humboldt mentions a still more remarkable submarine 
fountain on the southern coast of Cuba, about ten miles from 
the shore, which gushes through the salt water with such 
vehemence that boats approaching the spot are obliged to 
use great caution. Trade vessels are said sometimes to visit 
this spring in order to provide themselves in the midst of the 
ocean with a supply of fresh water" (Ibid.), 

Wonders of. The Psalmist says — "wherein are things 
creeping (moving) innumerable " (Ps. civ. 25). Is not the 
Word true"? Could any human arithmetic number the 
inhabitants of the sea ] The single roe of the codfish is 
computed to produce 9,000,000; so that one roe of full- 
grown fish w^ould produce as many as would reach by 
measurement from London to Scotland and back, and then 
leave as many as a thousand men could carry ; other fish 
produce in like proportion, and this has gone on for cen- 
turies ; yet, under the Divine rule of subjugation, there is 
plenty of room in the sea, as well as food for their existence. 



300 



SEA. 



Does not such a proof of Divine arrangement overtlirow those 
futile notions so widely spread, and which sceptics receive, 
concerning numbers and space " (^Alfred Brandon). 

'•'The abundance of animal life in the ocean greatly 
exceeds that on the land. The sea affords a home for the 
greatest of known animals, as well as for the most minute, 
and life teems everywhere. Dr. Scoresby once stated that a 
patch of the Greenland Sea, 20,000 square miles in extent, 
teemed with a species of medusa, on which the whale feeds ; 
and he calculated that every square mile contained 23 quad- 
rillion, 888 trillion of independent living creatures ! He 
did his best, moreover, — we shall not pronounce with what 
success, — to bring the number contained in one of these 
miles within the range of conception, by saying that to count 
them would require 80,000 persons, and a period equal to 
the interval between the present and the creation. Yet it 
must be remembered that this was only the aggregate of life 
in one of the 20,000 square miles, and that the whole scene 
was but a fragment of the ocean. In the coral polyp we 
have another example of a creature whose numbers baffle 
conception. In many parts of the ocean, islands and reefs 
are now being constructed by countless myriads of these 
animals. Off the east coast of Australia there is a single 
coral reef of a thousand miles long, and vast tracts of the 
Pacific are studded with islands of coral formation. Placed 
side by side with the production of these pigmy labourers, 
pyramids and breakwaters, and all the most stupendous 
works reared by man, sink into utter insignificance" {Dr, 
Chaplin). 

Light in unlooked-for places. There is reason to 
believe that instead of the unfathomable caves of ocean being 
all black in outer darkness, they are ablaze with golden 
splendour. The creatures brought up from tens of thousands 
of feet below the surface are singularly phosphorescent, and 
it is probable — nay, almost certain — that every movement of 
every living being in those abysmal depths flashes out 



SECURITY. 



801 



brilliancy. A more fancy-stirriDg fact I never heard of" 
{Charles Buxton). 

The depth of the sea. The land surface below the 
waters of the ocean, with its valleys and mountains, its 
plains and chasms, as far as we can judge, is simply a counter- 
part of the land surface above. We know that there are 

depths of the sea "far greater below the surface of the 
ocean than the depths of the highest mountains above its 
level. It is said that Lieutenant Maury fathomed 25,000 
feet in the ISTorth Atlantic, and Lieutenant Eourke sounded 
depths in the Indian Ocean even far beyond this. 

" I WILL cast all their SINS INTO THE DEPTHS OF THE 

SEA.'* After a wild and stormy night you may have walked, 
as I have, upon a beach strewn with the planks and spars 
of a wreck, and seen the hull of the ship stranded high on 
the shore. If that vessel had foundered in the midst of the 
Atlantic or Indian Ocean, you might have sailed over the 
spot next day, and not a trace of her would be seen. She 
would be lying in the depths of the sea^ God says, I will 
cast all their sins," not into the shallow places, where, so to 
speak, they may be cast up to be seen again, but I will cast 
all their sins into the depths of the sea J* The ocean covers 
the tiniest pebble and the loftiest mountain, and the ocean 
fulness of -Christ's blood covers, not only the weakest 
infirmities of our nature, but the deepest depravation of our 
lives " (Eev. J. W, Bardsley). 

SECTJEITY. 

In Christ. " Men who stand on any other foundation 
than the Eock Christ Jesus, are like birds who build their 
nests in trees by the side of rivers. The bird sings in the 
branches, and the river sings below : but all the while the 
waters are undermining the soil about the roots, till, in some 
unsuspected hour, the tree falls with a crash into the stream, 
and then the nest is sunk, the home is gone, and the bird is 
a wanderer. But birds that hide their young in the clefts of 



302 



SELF-DENIAL. 



the rocks are undisturbed, and after every winter, coming 
again tliey find their nests awaiting them, and all their life 
long they may brood in the same places, undisturbed by 
stream or storm." 

Of the Church. ^^The real security of Christianity is 
to be found in its benevolent morality, its exquisite adapta- 
tion to the human heart, and the facility with which its 
scheme accommodates itself to the capacity of every human 
intellect ; in the condolence which it bears to every house of 
mourning ; in the light with which it brightens the great 
mystery of the grave " [Macaulay), 

SELF-DElsriAL. 
The secret of success is to know how to deny yourself. 
.... If you once learn to get the whip-hand of yoursalf, 
that is the best education. Prove to me that you can control 
yourself, and I'll say you are an educated man ; and without 
this, all other education is good for next to nothing " {Mrs. 
OUpliant), 

To train a virtue is not seldom to restrain it. 

Those inexperienced in the Divine life think religion all 
austerity and sacrifice — giving up so much. But it really 
requires nothing to be renounced which is worth keeping, 
and for what it takes away, it makes up tenfold in better 
things. 

'^Eeligion, in one sense, is a life of self-denial, just as 
husbandry, in one sense, is a life of death. You go and 
bury a seed, and that is husbandry ; but you bury one that 
you may reap a hundred-fold. Self-denial does not belong to 
religion, as characteristic of it ; it belongs to human life. 
The lower nature must always be denied when you are trying 
to rise to a higher sphere. It is no more necessary to be 
self-denying to be a Christian than it is to be an artist, or to 
be a man in distinction from a brute." 



SELF-PXEASIKG. 



303; 



SELF-PLEASIXG. 

IN'apoleon. I have often thought of a lesson that may 
be taught us by a few words of the first iN'apoleon ; it had 
reference to his second marriage. Paying no regard to the 
plain command of God, or the terrible sorrow he inflicted on 
one who had been faithful to him for above fifteen years, he 
divorced Josephine, and married the young Maria Louise, 
Archduchess of Austria. He expected that the marriage 
would tend to the strengthening of his dynasty ; but it 
turned out just the reverse. It was one cause amongst many 
of the overthrow of his dominion. And in his later days he 
saw it and spoke af it. *That marriage,' said he, ^was the 
cause of my destruction. In contracting it, I placed my 
foot on an abyss covered over with flowers ' " {Rev, G, 
Everard), 

SELFISHNESS. 

Go SHARES, is an excellent rule to do with everything we 
get — not as children only. 

There was a boy who went to school, who was known as 
a selfish boy. He did not go shares. ISTo one in the school 
liked him. His mother sent him a basket of peaches ; and 
his schoolmates all voted that they ought to go shares. But 
the boy brought the basket up to his bedroom, and put it at 
night under his pillow, when the rest were all asleep. In 
the middle of the night there was a great scream, and the 
boys were all awakened. He was eating one of the peaches, 
and it had a wasp in it, which stung him badly. It served 
him right. It might not have occurred if they had been 
divided fairly in the day-time. 

SEKPENTS. 

From the report made for India it appears that there are . 
about 20,000 deaths annually from snake-bites. For 1870 — 
1882, from 150,000 to 200,000 died from this cause. India 
possesses the most deadly snakes of any country in the world ; 



304 



SERVICE. 



the bite of the cobra is often fatal in half an hour. In 1880, 
212,776 serpents of all kinds were destroyed; rewards 
amounting to 11,613 rupees being given for their destruction. 

There were also in 1881, 2757 persons killed by wild 
beasts. In that year 1997 tigers and 3397 leopards were 
destroyed. 

SEEYICE. 

Dr. Guturie, when allowed no longer to preach as he had 
been wont to do all his eventful and useful life, wrote to his 
flock : " The physicians who have put a seal on my lips have 
not tied up my hands ; and thus left free to do what I can 
with my pen to serve our Blessed Master, and the best inter- 
ests of mankind, I hope, wlien the last summons comes, it 
will find me working as well as watching." 

A Missionary in China was greatly depressed by the 
carelessness of his hearers. One day the words of Isa. liii. 1 
came to his mind as sent from above, and they were followed 
by a dream. He thought he was standing near a rocky 
boulder, and trying with all his might to break it with a 
sledge-hammer ; but blow after blow had no effect — there was 
no impression made. At length he heard a voice, which 
said, " Never mind— go on ; I will pay you all the same, 
whether you break it or not." So he went on doing the Avork 
that was given him, and was content (Isa. lix. 4). 

Every Christian has a threefold ministry — ^gifts, (talents, 
riches, &c.), personal service, and prayer. 

" God has three sorts of servants in the world ; some are 
slaves, who serve Him from a principle of fear ; some are hire- 
lings y who serve Him for the sake of wages ; and the last ^re 
sonSy who serve Him under the influence of love " (SecJc-er). 

An Indian chief, in inviting a missionary to settle in his 
tribe, used this beautiful argument as a plea : " Come and 
abide with me, and you shall be as one that stands by a 
running water, filling many vessels." 



SHAME. 



805 



SHAME. 

Ashamed of the Gospel of Christ. *'Let the sceptic, 
let the wicked profligate, blush at his deeds of darkness, which 
will not bear the light, lest they should be made manifest ; 
but never let the Christian blush to own the holy Gospel. 
Where is the philosopher who is ashamed to own the God of 
Nature 1 or the Moslem that is ashamed of Mahomet 1 And 
shall the Christian^ minister be ashamed of Christ] God 
forbid ! No ; ]et me be ashamed of the world, and let me 
blush at sin ; but never let me be ashamed of the Gospel of 
Christ 1 " (Dr. B. Newton,) 

SHIPS. 

The first authoritative return of British shipping was issued 
in 1701-2 : the total number of ships in the ports of the United 
Kingdom then were 3281 ; estimated to carry 281,222 tons, 
and employing 27,196 men. In 1871 the entire number was 
22,207, carrying 5,633,561 tons, and employing 199,738 
men. 

The Shipworm. There is an illustration of the power of 
little things to do harm in the shipworm, a singular creature, 
that drills holes in the timbers of our strongest ships. " Its 
shells," says Hart wig, *^ which are only a few lines broad, are 
very small compared with the size of the vermiform body, 
and are therefore completely inadequate for its defence. For 
better security it bores deep passages in submerged timber, 
which it lines with a calcareous secretion, closing the opening 
with two small lids. Unfortunately, while thus taking care 
of itself, it causes considerable damage to the works of man. 
It is principally to guard against the attacks of this worm 
that ships are sheathed with copper, and the beams of sub- 
marine constructions closely studded with nails. During the 
last century the teredo caused such devastation on the dykes 
which guard a great part of Holland from the encroachments 
of an overwhelming ocean, that the Dutch began to tremble 
for their safety ; and thus a miserable worm struck terror in 

X 



306 



SHIPWRECKS. 



the heart of a nation which had laughed to scom the tyranny 
of Philip II., and bid defiance to the legions of the no less 
infamous Louis XIV/' 

SHIPWEECKS. 

There's another man. Daring a heavy storm off the 
coast of Spain, a dismantled merchantman was observed by a 
British frigate drifting before the wind. Every eye and glass 
were on her ; and a canvas shelter on a deck almost level with 
the sea, suggested to the eye that there might still be life on 
board. Touched with the generous feehng common to sailors, 
a boat was lowered, and a few gallant men started to plough 
the rolling waves. They reached the vessel ; they shouted ; 
and now a strange object rolled from that canvas screen 
against the shroud of a broken mast. It was hauled 
into the boat. It proved to be the trunk of a man bent 
head and knees together. In horror and pity the crew gathered 
round it. The miserable object by and by showed signs 
of life. The seamen drew near ; and then came a mutter, 
in a deep, sepulchral voice — Tliere is another many Ees- 
cued himself, the first use the saved man made of speech 
was to try and save his fellow. Oh ! that we were ready 
to learn that lesson, and were more frequently practising it. 
So long as in our own homes, and among our friends, and in 
this wreck of a world, there lives an unconverted man, let us 
hear the call as from those perishing within our reach : 

There's another man,'' and do all we can, by God's help, to 
save that man. 

We are to use the means. " The Bible never speaks of 
men as elected to be saved from the shipwreck, but only as 
elected to tighten the ropes, and hoist the sail, and stand to 
the rudder. Let a man search faithfully; let him see that 
where Scripture describes Christians as elected, it is as elected 
of faith, as elected to sanctification ; as elected to obedience ; 
and the doctrine of election will be nothing but a stimulus 
to efi'ort. It cannot act as a soporific " (Alelvil), 



SIN. 



307 



SIK 

XoTHiNG TO BE FEARED BUT SIN". The Emperoi of Con- 
stantinople was mortally exasperated against St. John 
Chrysostom. One day, in a burst of anger, he said to his 
courtiers, " I would be glad to be avenged of this bishop." 
Whereupon four or five of them proffered their advice as to 
how this should be done. The first said, " Send him away 
far into exile, so that you may never see him again;'' the 
second, "Confiscate his property;" the third, *'Cast him 
into prison loaded with chains ; " the fourth, " Are you not 
supreme ] let him perish. Eid yourself of him by ordering 
him to be put to death." But the fifth said, " You all de- 
ceive yourselves ; this is not the way to punish him. If you 
send him into exile, the whole earth is his native land. If 
you confiscate his goods, you take them from the poor — not 
from him. If you thrust him into a dungeon, he will kiss 
his chains, and think himself happy. If you condemn him 
to death, you open heaven to him. Prince, do you wish to 
be revenged on him 1 Force him to commit sin. I know 
him : this man fears nothing in the ivorld hut sin " (Missioner^s 
Manual of Anecdote), 

" All have sinned." " Men differ from one another in 
moral character, even as they differ in the tones of their 
voice, the height of their stature, or the beauty of their 
countenance. But though these differences appear to us to 
be very great, in God's sight there is but one common 
standard for sin. On the earth's surface there are high 
mountains and deep valleys ; but if we could rise with the 
eagle, and look down upon the earth, the mountains would 
be brought low, and the earth would appear as one smooth, 
convex bend. And as God looks down from heaven. His 
dwelling-place, upon the hearts of men, in His sight there is 
*no difference.' The high mountain-tops of morality and 
the deep valleys of degradation and sin seem as one, when 
compared with the exceeding greatness of His holiness " 
( Clergyman's Magazine). 

X 2 



308 



SIN. 



The pleasures of sin. The story is told of an ancient 
heathen who made a wonderful cup. When filled with wine, 
it appeared like other cups, until the thirsty drinker, sus- 
pecting no device, drained it to the dregs, when lo ! there 
lay before him a serpent coiled upon the bottom, with gleam- 
ing eyes, and extended fangs, as if prepared to strike its 
victim. So is it with those who drain the cup of sin. There 
may be pleasantness in the wine at the beginning ; but there 
is the serpent in the end ! 

Latent in the heart. "There is a piece of iron laid 
upon the anvil. The hammers are plied upon it lustily ; a 
thousand sparks are scattered on every side. Suppose it 
possible to count each spark as it falls from the anvil, yet 
who could guess the number of the unborn sparks that lie 
still latent and hidden in the mass of iron? ^ow your 
sinful nature may be compared to that heated bar. Tempta- 
tions are the hammers ; your sins are the sparks. If you 
could count them, — which you cannot do, — yet who could 
tell the multitudes of unborn iniquities and eggs of sins that 
lie slumbering in your souls 1 You must know that, before 
you know the sinfulness of your heart " {Rev. C. Spurgeon). 

" XoT a grace of the S])irit but has a weed growing under 
it. Each grace is a victory over its opponent " (/. H, Evans). 

The pleasures of sin must needs be short, because life 
cannot be long, and they both end together. Indeed, most 
times, the pleasures of sin die before the sinner dies. Sinners 
live to bury their joy in this world. The worm breeds in 
their conscience, before it breeds in their flesh, by death. 
But be sure the pleasure of sin never survives this world. 
The word is gone out of God's mouth — every sinner shall lie 
down in sorrow, and wake in sorrow. 

The great danger of professing Christians as regards 
pleasures is very often going into them without any remem- 
brance of God. So Christian people, going abroad, seem 
to ignore their character as witnesses, which should never 
change, and think they may enjoy a far greater license than 



SIN, 



SOD 



tliey would do at home. It was the wise advice of Arch- 
bishop Sharpe, Cultivate a continual undergrowth of small 
pleasures. Very few long ones are let upon long leases. 

" If faith be the jewel, a good conscience is the cabinet 
in which it is kept ; and if the cabinet be broken, the jewel 
must needs be in danger of being lost. INTow you know what 
sins waste the conscience — sins either deliberately com- 
mitted, or impenitently continued in. Oh take — take heed 
of deliberate sin ; like a stone thrown into a clear stream, it 
will so disturb thy soul, and muddy it, that thou, who even 
now couldest see thy interest in the promise, will now be at 
a loss, and not know what to think of thyself. They are 
like a fire on the top of the house, it will be no easy matter 
to quench it " {Old Writer). 

The Earl of Eochester was wont actually to revel in sin. 
He framed arguments for it ; he used to glory in reading 
sensual works ; in enticing others to wickedness. He even 
wrote panegyrics upon it. For five years, he once told a 
Christian minister, he was continually drunk; not all the 
time under the visible effects of it, but his body was so 
inflamed as never to allow him to be fully master of himself. 
Alas ! all this time he was like one watering poisonous weeds. 
Yet God had mercy even on such a sinner, and then, when 
his eyes were opened, how differently he viewed the bait 
of sin ! 

Little sins. " A famous ruby was offered to this country. 
The report of the Crown Jeweller was, that it was the finest 
he had ever seen or heard of ; but that one of the ' facets,' 
one of the * little ' cuttings of the face, was slightly fractured. 
The result was that that almost invisible flaw reduced its 
value by thousands of pounds, and it was rejected from the 
regalia of England. Again, when Canova was about to 
commence his famous statue of the great !N'apoleon, his keenly- 
observant eye detected a tiny red line, running through the 
upper portion of the splendid block that at infinite cost had 
been fetched from Paros, and he refused to lay chisel upon 



310 



SIN. 



it. Once more, in the story of the early struggles of the 
elder Herschel, while he was working out the problem of 
gigantic telescopic specula), you will find that he made scores 
upon scores before he got one to satisfy him. A scratch like 
the slenderest spider-cord sufficed to place among the spoiled 
what had cost him long weeks of toil and anxiety. Again, 
in the case of a ship, the measure of a ship to resist the 
shock of a wave, or the strain of wind, is not its strongest, but 
its weakest part. The tremendous issues contingent on atten- 
tion or non-attention to the slightest leak, were illustrated in 
an accident in the late deplorable civil war in America. One 
of the Federal war-ships had what seemed a merely superficial 
leakage, and though noticed, it was not thought necessary to 
countermand the order that she should take part in an 
approaching conflict. At the crisis of the encounter it was 
found that the sea-water had been oozing into the gunpowder 
magazine, and rendered nearly the whole useless. On that 
powder hung victory or defeat. The * little leak ' went 
uncared for ; and an inferior force won. The very perfection 
aimed at, you will observe, necessitated the rejection of the 
gem, and marble block, and speculum, and leaking timber. 
Even so were Christianity a less holy thing, a thing that could 
abide compromise, then what are called * small sins' — the 
larger and grosser being acknowledged — might be passed over, 
winked at. But this cannot be" (Handbook of Illustration). 

Secret sins. "You have seen a ship out in the bay, 
swinging with the tide, and seeming as if it would follow it, 
and yet it cannot, for down beneath the water it is anchored. 
So many a soul sways towards heaven, but cannot ascend 
thither, because it is anchored to some secret sin " {Clergij- 
man's Magazine), 

" As HUSBANDMEN make nse of the very thorns and briars 
that grow in their fields, to stop the gaps and strengthen the 
fences about them, so should we improve our very sins and 
failings to fence our souls, that we lie not open to the lilce 
temptations in the future " {Bishop Hopkins), 



SIN, 



311 



" Scarlet " sins. " We have some little difficulty," said 
a scientific lecturer, " with the iron dyes ; but the most 
troublesome of all are Turkey-red rags. You see I have 
dipped this into my solution; its red is paler, but it is still 
strong. If I steep it long enough to efface the colour entirely, 
the fibre will be destroyed ; it will be useless for our manu- 
facture. How then are we to dispose of our red rags 1 We 
leave their indelible dye as it is, and make them into red 
blotting-paper. Perhaps you have wondered why your 
writing-pad is red; now you know the reason." What a 
striking illustration of the fitness and force of this figure of 
God's Word, and of the power of '^the precious Elood of 
Jesus " to change and cleanse, is furnished by the above 
explanation ! The Spirit of God led the prophet Isaiah to 
write, not " Though your sins be as blue as the sky, or as 
green as the olive-leaf, or as black as night " ; he chose the 
very colour which modern science, with all its appliances, 
finds to be indestructible. " Though your sins be as scarlet, 
they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like 
crimson, they shall be as wooL*' 

SINCERITY. 

*^ Can sincerity save the body ? Think — suppose a man 
to be quite persuaded in his own mind that a poison was 
vv'holesome food or medicine, and he takes that poison with 
this sincere opinion ; will his sincerity save him from being 
poisoned ? Suppose a man to be quite persuaded in his own 
jnind that a certain path is the one which leads to his home, 
and having taken that path, and walked on it, he comes to a 
cliff, and, still persuaded, steps on ; will his sincerity save 
him from a deadly fallT' (Dr. Flavel Cook.) 

A SHIPMASTER is steering homewards. He has been many 
days at sea, without sight of the land. He has calculated 
his course according to the best of his ability ; but, from the 
fault of inaccurate instruments, or sor'.e blunder in his figures, 
he has cast up his course several points wide of the truth. He 



SLAVERY. 



steers accordingly, sincerely believing that his course is right. 
Will the sincerity of his belief in error prevent his ship from 
being broken if it strikes the rock 1 No. Nor will sincerity 
save the man from spiritual shipwreck, who steers his course 
heavenwards by a wrong chart, or an untrue compass. 

SLAVERY. 

" I'sE FREE. An American writer tells a story of a lady 
from tlie Northern States, who happened to be travelling in 
the South, soon after the proclamation of the liberty of the 
slaves. She chanced to be detained for the night in a little 
country inn, lying off the main road, and where it was 
evident that a guest was very seldom entertained. The lady 
was shown into a bedroom, where the dust had not been 
disturbed for years. The servant was a wretched-looking 
coloured woman, without any energy, to whom every thing 
was a trouble. 

'Auntie,* said the Northern lady, as pleasantly as she 
could, ' I am from the North, and we are not used to having 
things like this. You know we Northerners set you free, 
and I think you ought to try to make things a little com- 
fortable for us when we come amongst you. Just see if 
you can make this room a little tidier while I go down 
to tea." 

" The lady left the room. She returned in about an hour, 
and was amazed to find the dusty room changed into a picture 
of neatness. And more wonderful still than the change in 
the room, was the change in the woman herseK. She stood 
there, looking inches taller. Energy was in every muscle, 
and in every movement. Her eye flashed fire. She looked 
like a new creature. The lady began to thank her for the 
change she had made in the room, but the negro woman 
interrupted her eagerly. 

" * Oh, missus, is we really free ? ' 
* Of course you are,' said the lady. 

" ' Oh, missus, is you quite sure ] * 



SMALL CONGREGATIONS. 



313 



" ' Certainly. I am quite sure. Did you not know of it 
before r 

'^'Well, missus, we did hear that we war free, and we 
asked massa, and he said of course we wasn't ; and so, you 
see, we was afraid to go. Then we heard tell again that we 
war, and we went and asked the Colonel j and he said we had 
better stay where we war with the ole massa. And so, you 
see, we'se just been off and on. Sometimes we'd hope we 
was free, then again we'd think we wasn't. But now, missus, 
if you are sure that we is free, won't you tell me all about it ] ' 
So the lady told the eager listener all about it, — the story 
of the war, and of the proclamation of freedom. 

" The poor woman drank it all in. She heard the good 
news, and believed it ; then she got up and walked out of the 
room. 

Ts free, she said. * I ain't going to stay with the old 
massa any longer. I's free ! I^ot another stroke of work 
for the ole massa. I's free ! ' 

The freedom had been purchased with blood ; the 
Government had declared it. At any moment liberty was 
hers, if she only believed and claimed it. 

" isTot forgiven only are we ; we are free from sin, that we 
no longer should serve the old master. You have heard of it 
often enough, and here, day after day, stands the glorious 
Emancipator, sorrowful and pitying, wondering that the 
liberty which He has purchased with His blood should 
be unclaimed and unenjoyed. *Have I been so long time 
with you, and yet hast thou not known me?'" {Mark Guy 
Pearse,) 

SMALL CONGEEGATIOITS. 

Many incidents are often told of the blessings which have 
resulted from not being disheartened by a small audience. 
Take only two : 

**Mr. P., an agent of the Bible Society, went in the course 
of his work to a meeting of the Society in a country place. 



314 



SMALL CONGREGATIONS. 



The night was tremendously stormy, a strong wind blowing, 
with very heavy rain. When he got to the place of meeting 
there were only two ladies ia the room, and it was debated 
what to do. It seemed a singular thing to hold a meeting 
with only two ladies ; but the meeting was held. At the 
collection each lady put in 10^. i^ext morning two notes 
were brought to him from these two ladies, saying how 
deeply they had been interested at what had been said, and 
each enclosed a cheque for £50. A meeting which produced 
£100 could scarcely be called a had meeting !" 

*^In the life of Dr. Lymax Beecher an account is given of 
his preaching to a still smaller audience ! In the early part 
of his career. Dr. Beecher was engaged to preach for a brother 
minister, whose church was in a remote district, where the 
population was sparse. It was in midwinter, and the day 
was unusually severe and cold, the snow lying thick upon 
the ground. On his arrival there was no one in the church, 
yet, wishing to do his duty, he went into the pulpit, to begin 
the service, and presently one man came in and sat down, 
and at the appointed hour the preacher began. The service 
was closed with the benediction, and before Dr. Beecher 
came down from the pulpit the solitary man had slipped 
away. Twenty years after. Dr. Beecher was travelling in 
Ohio, when a stranger came forward and asked him whether 
he remembered preaching to a single man so long ago. 
* Indeed I do,* was the answer, ^ and I have always been 
wishing to find that man.* * Sir,' said the stranger, ^ I am 
the man. That sermon was the means of my conversion, and 
making me a minister. Yonder is my church. The results 
of that sermon are now all over Ohio.' " 

Lord Shaftesbury, however, five years ago, gave an account 
of a smaller meeting still! Presiding in 1874 at a meeting 
in Exeter Hall for the Irish Scripture Eeaders' Society, the 
audience was very small. In fact, one of the speakers 
referred to it as a *poor meeting.' Lord Shaftesbury in 
responding to a vote of thanks, took up the phrase about a 



SNOW. 



* poor meeting,* and said, ' I, for one, do not care a straw aLout 
this being not so large as some of the meetings over which 
from time to time I preside. I have by this time become 
accustomed to very large meetings and to very small meetings. 
Sometimes I have seen no good at all resulting from your 
large meetings ; whereas from very small gatherings the results 
have been of the most blessed and encouraging character. I 
once saw a vast amount of good result from what would have 
been called no meeting at all. In strict phraseology there 
was no meeting, although it was advertised to*be held in this 
hall, and what did actually take place transpired in the room 
where we are now assembled. There was a resolution to be 
moved and seconded ; but beyond the two gentlemen who 
moved and seconded it, myself as chairman, and a gentleman 
of the press who had come as reporter, we had no audience. 
The reporter sat at that corner, and I sat in this chair. The 
two gentlemen moved and seconded the resolution, and I put 
it as chairman, and it was adopted with no dissentient voice 1 
Well, the resolution of the meeting was reported in the news- 
papers, the money needed was soon forthcoming, and the 
person for whom the money was asked was sent to the 
University, where he studied for the Christian ministry, and 
he throve and became a black Bishop, of great usefulness and 
considerable distinction. So whenever you are inclined to 
think slightingly of a small meeting, or to feel discouraged by 
it, remember my little story ' " (^Sunday at Home). 

SNOW. 

One of the striking exhibitions of the marvels of nature. 
Look, e. g.^ at the extraordinary variety and beauty of the 
flakes of snow. Dr. Scorseby, in his account of the Arctic 
regions, has collected no less than 96 varieties of snow, as 
the result of his own observations, and has arranged them 
under five separate forms, of which the three leading are the 
lamellar, the pyramidal, and the spicular. The flakes of 
snow in the polar regions have been seen of red, orange, and 



816 



SNOW. 



salmon colour. Sometimes snow-storms present a luminous 
appearance, covering all objects with a sheet of fire. The 
whiteness of snow is generally positive. Snow-water has 
been found by chemical analysis to contain more oxygen than 
rain or river-water. 

The valuable purposes of snow in the covering of nature 
are many. Accumulated upon high mountain^, it serves to 
feed, as it gradually melts, the streams which a sudden 
increase of rain would convert into destructive torrents or 
standing pools ; and in many countries it tempers the burning 
lieats of summer by cooling the breezes which pass over it. 
In severe climates it acts as a defence against the rigours of 
winter, by the protection it affords to vegetation against the 
frost, and the shelter it gives to animals, who bury themselves 
in the snow. Even in more temperate climates its presence 
is a most Viiluable preservative to vegetation, pulverizing and 
moistening tlie ground, and affording warmth where it is 
much needed. 

The immense weight of snow is surprising. A singular 
calculation was made during a late snow-storm. An inch 
of rain falling upon an acre of land weighs over 100 tons; 
there are 640 acres in every square mile; so that an inch of 
rain falling on a square mile would weigh 64,000 tons. The 
area of England, Wales, and Scotland is 89,643 square 
miles. Assuming the whole of this to be covered with snow 
to the depth of one foot, and that a foot of snow is equal to an 
inch of rain, the amazing result would follow that there must 
have been discharged from the heavens in the form of snow, 
a weight of water equal to 5,737,152,000 tons. Of course 
this enormous weight has first been lifted up to the sky in 
the shape of vapour by the sun, and will be again made to 
fall, and again to rise, and so on. It is difficult to convey 
full ideas by mere figures, but assuming the shipping of the 
world to be capable of carrying 20,000,000 of tons, and that 
it was requisite to carry the whole to the other side of the 
world, it would follow that the vessels would have to under* 



SOLDIEES. 



317 



take 286 voyages before they would have finished their work. 
Yet here are the wonderful works of God going on so peace- 
fully and noiselessly, and who thinks of them ? 

The snow prayer. A little girl was dying ; the mother 
went to her bedside, and the child asked her to pray for her. 
The mother, who was an untaught woman, and did not know 
the truth, said, "I do not know what to pray for." The 
child replied, " Say my little snow prayer," at the same time 
pointing to a sheet of paper on which it was written, pinned 
to the bedpost, and which her teacher had written out for 
her at school. The weeping mother took it down, and read 
the following prayer : " God, wash me from all my sins 
in my Saviour's blood, and I shall be whiter than snow ; fill 
me with thy Holy Spirit, for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen/' 

Miss Marsh wrote to a well-known clergyman, the Eev. 
H. L. Harkness, **Let the above prayer^ of which my sister, 
Mrs. Chalmers, and I had the precious privilege of sending 
15,000 copies (on large cards) to our soldiers in the Crimea, 
and 10,000 to our sailors, be called * the snow prayer/ as 
named by this dear little girl." 

SOLDIERS. 

Esprit de corps. In the Crimean war a wounded soldier 
was laid on the table in the surgeon's room. He had lost 
much blood, and his head was very weak. Almost uncon- 
scious, all efforts to rouse him seemed in vain. At last an 
officer hushed all present into silence, and then in a voice of 
thunder called out the wounded veteran's name. That shout 
saved him. He could not resist the call which had so often 
summoned him to duty. 

Promptness. *^Be ready," was the motto of the brave 
Lord Lawrence. 

Duty. ** I came here to perform my duty, and I neither 
do nor can enjoy satisfaction in anything excepting the 
performance of my duty to my country " {Duke of Wellington 
in Portugal), 



318 



SPIRIT, THE HOLY. 



SPIRIT, THE HOLY. 

" It is strange, considering the vital importance of the 
work of the Spirit in man's redemption, there is not more 
visible honour given to Him. Books concerning the Holy 
Ghost may be almost numbered on our fingers. Why also 
are there not in this land (as is the case, I believe, in America) 
cliurches dedicated to the Holy Ghost, by His various titles 1 
AVould not such names as * The Church of the Comforter,' 
* The Church of the Paraclete,' &c., bring home to our minds 
the special work of the Holy Ghost, which is to make our 
poor hearts churches for His habitation] Then again, how 
seldom, except on Whitsunday, is the Holy Ghost in His 
Person, His office, and His operations, the theme of the 
pulpit ! We often preach, and rightly so, concerning the 
love of God the Father in giving His Son to redeem us. We 
often preach of the exceeding great love of the Lord Jesus in 
dying for us ; but how seldom do we preach of * the love of 
the Spirit,' as shown in our enlightenment and sanctification ? " 
{Eev, Philip Norton.) 

Without the presence of the Holy Ghost, the temple is 
empty, the house is dark, the body is dead, the channel is 
dry, the garden is barren, the heart is wretched, the mouth 
is dumb " {Rev. J. Richardson). 

Ey passing salt water through sand you may filter it 
from gross impurities, but its saltness, or any poisonous or 
other matter held in solution, remains unaffected. So, the 
coarser impurities of life may be corrected by pride, resolution, 
affection for some one loved, &c. ; but the inner taint of 
corruption cannot thus be purged ; it remains untouched, 
except by the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit" 
[Clergyman's Magazine). 

The dew. We do not always see, at first, when the 
answer of our prayers for the Holy Spirit comes. Can you 
see the dew fall ] Ko one ever saw a single drop forming, 
and yet as soon as the sun ris.es, you see that it has come, 
and is sparkling all over the field. It came long before yoa 



SPIRIT^ THE HOLY. 



319 



saw it, falling sweetly and silently in the twilight, and in the 
dark ; so do not fancy God is not hearing you hecause you 
have not felt anything very sudden and wonderful. He is 
hearing and answering you all the time. You would not go 
on asking, unless the dew of His Spirit were already falling 
upon your heart, and teaching you to pray. The more He 
gives you of His blessed Spirit, the more you will ask for, 
and the more you ask the more He will give " {Francis R. 
Haver gal). 

The suxdial. A man may see every figure upon the dial, 
but he cannot tell how the day goes unless the sun shines. 
We read many truths in the Scriptures, but we cannot know 
their saving and sanctifying power, until God shines by His 
Spirit upon the sacred page. 

" Though Christ be the Head, yet is the Holy Spirit the 
Heart of the Church, from whence the vital spirits of grace 
and holiness are issued out into the quickening of the body 
mystical " (Heyleii). 

To PRAY IN THE Spirit, is to pray in or with the Spirit of 
God; " praying in the Holy Ghosf (Jude 20). In order to 
pray aright, it is necessary to pray in or by the Spirit of God. 
Prayer is the creature's act, but the Spirit's gift. There is 
a concurrence both of the Spirit and the soul of the Chris- 
tian, to the performance of it. The Holy Spirit is said to 
pray in us (Eom. viii. 26) ; and we are said to pray in Him 
(Jude 20). 

The Spirit is the only true interpreter of the Word. He 
only that made the lock can help us to a key that will fit its 
wards and open its sense. 

Barrenness. " When the fields are burnt up for want of 
rain, men and beast make a moan ; yea, the very earth itself 
cleft with drought, by opening its thirsty mouth, express- 
able its extreme need of some kind showers from the heavens* 
to refresh it. And hast thou a sense of thy woful condition t 
Which is worse, think you, that the fruits and beasts of the 
field should perish for want of water, or thy soul for want of 



320 



STEALING. 



the Spirit ] Coul Jst thou but be brought to lament thy want, 
there were hope of having it supplied " {Old Writer). 

" Though the ship hath a compass to steer by, and store 
and tackling, yet without a gale of wind it cannot sail ; so 
should we have the written Word as our compass to sail by, 
and make use of our endeavours as the tackling ; yet, unless 
the Spirit of God blow upon us, we cannot sail with profit 
{Cripplegate Lectures). 

Christ is the door that opens unto God's presence, and 
draws the soul into His bosom ; and faith is the key that 
unlocks the door ; but the Spirit of Christ that makes the 
key, and helps the Christian to turn it in prayer {Banyan), 
I NEVER NOTICED till to-day the negative character of the 
commands regarding the Holy Spirit : Eesist not ; quench 
not ; vex not ; grieve not — seeming to imply, that if we do 
not restrain and force Him away, it is His blessed disposi- 
tion to abide and spring up in us as a well of living water " 
(/. Milne), 

Polished steel will not shine in the dark, no more ^vill 
truth, pure as it is, be a light to us, or from us, but by the 
Holy Spirit pouring in the light. 

STEALING. 

Convicted. A remarkable case occurred in Italy. When 
the independence of Italy was declared, a gentleman was 
living with his servant in IS'aples ; and rejoicing in the newly- 
proclaimed religious liberty of the country, gave him a Bible. 
The man took it, and read it with great delight. After a 
short time, he came to his master, and said, That's a very 
extraordinary book you have given me, sir." " Yes," said 
the master, I know it is." A few days afterwards he came 
again, and said the same thing : " That's a very extraordinary 
book." A third time he came, saying : " Sir, if that book is 
true, what is to become of me ? " at the same time putting his 
hand into his pocket and drawing forth a handful of coins, say- 
ing, ^' I've robbed you of all these." The man read on, and 



SUBSTITUTION. 



321 



in a short time the full truth broke in upon his mind. He 
became an earnest Christian, and soon felt a strong desire to 
make the good news known among his fellow-countrymen. 
He is now labouring in Italy, as a most successful evangelist. 

SUBSTITUTIOK 

"What was Christ afflicted for, but to procure our peace*? 
bruised for, but to heal our wounds ] why brought before an 
earthly judge to be condemned, but that we might be brought 
before a heavenly Judge to be absolved ? delivered to the 
pains of death, but to knock off from us the shackles of hell ? 
and became accursed in death, but that we might be blessed 
with eternal life " (CharnocTf). 

He died for me. In the famous American war, a short 
time ago, there were many happy homes broken up. One 
day an order came to the father of a large family that he was 
to go to the war. He felt very sad, not on his own account, 
but for those dear ones whom he must leave behind, not 
knowing what might befall him in the war. There was a 
young man living in the same town, who had no children. 
He went to the father and said, " Let me go to the war 
instead of you : it will not matter if I am killed. I have no 
children, nor anybody who will particularly be affected by 
my death.'' The father at first said No ; but when he thought 
of his little ones, and the young man continued to press him, 
he consented, and let him go. In one of the great battles 
the young man was killed. The father heard of his death, 
and travelled many miles to find his grave. When he found 
where he was buried, he had a tombstone placed over it, with 
the inscription — died for me'^ 

In the time of Xapoleon I., a certain man agreed to join 
the ranks in the place of a comrade who had been drafted. 
The offer was accepted. A battle took place, and the man 
was shot. Some time after, another draft was made, and 
they wanted a second time to take the man, whose substitute 
had been shot. But he said, " No, you can't take me ; Tm 

Y 



322 



suc::ess. 



dead. I was shot at sucli a battle/* " Why, man/' said 
they, you are crazy ! You got a man to go as your substi- 
tute, and he was shot, but you have not been shot" ; 
but he died in my place." They would not recognize it, and 
the matter was carried up to the Emperor; and the Emperor 
said, The man was riglit." ]S'apoleon 1. recognized the great 
doctrine of substitution. 

SUCCESS. 

Patience (perseverance) is success." 
" Success is not necessarily happiness." 

Failure is often only deferred success." 
" Xothing succeeds like success." 

Dr. John Hunter, when asked once what had been the 
secret of his success, said, " My plan is deliberately to consider 
before I commence, whether the thing be practicable. If it 
be not practicable, I do not attempt it. If it be practicable, I 
can accomplish it if I give sufficient pains to it ; and having 
began, I never stop till the thing is done. To this rule, I 
owe all my success." 

President Garfield. It was said of him, by the Eev. 
W. T. Moore, an American preacher, One of his most 
remarkable features was, that he made a success of everything 
he undertook." 

Daniel Webster once said to a young man, who hesitated 
about entering a certain profession, because it was so crowded 
that there was ^'no room:" Young man, there is always 
room at the top.'' 

Perseverance. *^It is all very well to tell me that a 
young man has distinguished himself by a brilliant first 
speech. He may go on, and he may be satisfied with his 
first triumph ; but show me a young man who has not 
succeeded at first, and nevertheless has gone on, and I will 
back that young man to do better than most of those who 
have succeeded at the first trial" (Charles James Fox). 

Secrets of success. The secret of all success is self- 



SUDDEN DEATH. 



323 



denial. If you once learn to get the whip-hand of yourself, 
that is the best education. Prove to me that you can control 
yourself, and 111 say you are an educated man ; but without 
that, all other education is good for next to nothing " {Mrs, 
Olijphant). 

" The conditions of success in life,'' Mr. Budgett of Bristol 
used to say, " are tad, jjush, and jprincipler 

" The talent of success," says Longfellow, is nothing 
more than doing what you can do well, without the thought 
of fame/' 

SUDDEISr DEATH. 

Colonel Chancellor, of the Eoyal Artillery, whose life 
had long been devoted to promoting schemes of benevolence 
and piety, attended a meeting for undergraduates at the Kev. A. 
Christopher's room, on Saturday evening, December 2nd, 1882. 
After the Eev. J. Howard Gill, Eector of Trowbridge, and 
the Eev. E. H. Stuart, of St. James's, Holloway, had addressed 
the University men. Colonel Chancellor came forward, and 
gave a noble testimony to the truth, introducing himself as 
having been a soldier of the King of kings for forty years. 
He spoke earnestly on the importance of being well assured 
of our eternal state. He related a conversation he had once 
with a brother officer, who was living an ungodly life. He 
said to him, Dear friend, your horse or mine may stumble 
to-morrow, and either of us might be suddenly killed. If 
this should happen to you, while you continue in your present 
state, you would die with the wrath of God above you, and 
hell beneath you. On the other hand, because I am, by God's 
grace in Christ, justified by faith, sudden death would be to 
me sudden glory." How little did those who heard these 
solemn words think that very soon he would realize what he 
said of himself. Thirteen hours after, in hastening to St. 
Mary's Church, to hear the University sermon in the morning, 
he was struck with spasm of the heart, and in a moment fell 

y2 



324 



SUFFERING. 



on the pavement, and was absent from the body, and present 
with the Lord." 

Mr. David Pitcatrn Wright, of Woodville Handsworth, 
Eirmingham, was another instance. On Wednesday, December 
21st, 1881, after the words, Lord, we thank Thee, that 
things present and things to come, life and death, are in Thy 
hands," he fell, and without a struggle, entered into the joy 
of the Lord. 

SUFFEEIXG. 

We make suffering to consist too much in bodily ail- 
ments ; but there is far more and far deeper suffering in the 
things pertaining to tlie mind and spirit. We never find the 
apostles complaining of their physical sickness or debility, 
but rather of their sufEerings for the reproach of Christ, when 
persecuted and reviled. 

**0h if you would, to please God, endure one quarter of 
the sullerings you give yourself, by resisting His uprooting 
of your self-love and love of sin, how much happier would 
you be " (Anon.). 

God's aim in human suffering. It is not so much for 
the present life that we are called to bear the discipline of 
suffering as for the future state, when God's purposes will be 
made manifest. While a man is stringing a harp, he tries 
the strings, not for music, but for preparation. When it is 
finished he draws out its full harmonies. God is ever fashion- 
ing the heart for future and eternal joys. He only sounds a 
string here and there, and a few chords now and then, to show 
how far His work is progressing. 

What is that which promotes the most and the deepest 
thought in the human race? It is not learning; it is not 
the conduct of business ; it is not even the impulse of the 
affections. It is suffering; and that perhaps is the reason 
why there is much suffering in the world. The angel that 
went down to trouble the waters, and to make them healing, 
was not, perhaps, entrusted with so great a boon as the angel 



SUICIDES. 



325 



who TDenevolently inflicted upon the sufferers the disease from 
which they suffered (Sir H. Helps), 

Luther, when watching the unmurmuring patience of a 
Christian friend, enduring great physical suffering, was con- 
strained to exclaim, " Who am I, a wordy preacher, compared 
with this great doer ? " 

SUICIDES. 

!N'otwithstanding all the moral and social efforts made in 
the present day, it is a melancholy fact, that the numher of 
suicides has greatly increased in the last twenty-five years. 
Taking seven principal countries in Europe, we find from 
statistics that whilst the population has increased 19 per 
cent., suicides have increased 63 per cent. 

As to the causes, a French estimate lately published is 
allowed to be very near the truth : insanity, 34 per cent. ; 
intemperance, 15 per cent.; grief, 23 per cent.; various other 
causes, 28 per cent. In England, it is said, that 12 per cent, 
comes from intemperance, whilst in Germany, 25 per cent. 

It appears that suicides are twice as numerous in towns as 
in the country, doubtless from the greater excitement and 
noise and tear of town life. Of great cities, Paris holds a 
sad pre-eminence, being four times the proportion of London, 
— a lesson which should not be lost in praising the city of 
pleasure and extravagance. London is happily almost the 
lowest rate, and is now 13 per cent, less than during the 
ten years, 1850-60. 

It is singular that winter, the gloomiest and most cheerless 
quarter of the year, is the lowest for this black list, the pro- 
portion having been: Spring, 296 ; summer, 313; autumn, 
196 ; winter, 195 — so that the brightest time of the year has 
been the time when this dark shadow has been the deepest. 
For this different causes may be assigned — may not one be, 
because then the unlicensed gaieties of pleasure are often 
carried to a wilder excess 1 

It also appears that of the sexeSj three-fourths are males, 



326 



SUSPICION". 



showing, that if the female intellect be less powerful, it is 
better balanced, and should we not add, more generally swayed 
by religious feeling ] 

It is a testimony also to the domestic life, that while the 
proportion of the unmarried who commit suicide is 56 per 
cent., of the married it is only 4:4: per cent. 

The poet Chatterton, the marvellous boy that perished 
in his pride," sick at heart at the desertion of his friends, and 
the failure of his bright vision of genius and hope — Chatter- 
ton took the fatal draught which hurried him into his Maker's 
presence, alas ! too soon. Yet as he lay dying by his own 
hand, there was waiting, it is said, an unopened letter of the 
Prime Minister of that day, offering him a post of honour 
and inliuence. 

SUSPICIOX. 

" There is nothing that makes a man suspect much more 
than to know little ; and, therefore, men should remedy sus- 
picion by procuring to know more, and not to keep suspicion 
in smother." — Bacon, 

SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 

EiSE AND GROWTH. To Eobcrt Eaikes has been generally 
conceded the honour of commencing Sunday Schools in Eng- 
land ; but they existed in different places long before his time. 
They were set on foot by Cardinal Borromeo in the Cathedral 
of Milan, in the 16 th century ; by Joseph Alleine, a Noncon- 
formist, in the 17th centuiy; by Miss Hannah Ball, a 
Wesleyan, and several others. The village of Catterick in 
Yorkshire claims to have had a Sunday School in operation 
in 1763; and still earlier, Ludwig Hacker opened a school 
of the same kind at Ephrata, Co. Lancaster, in Pennsylvania, 
for the German Baptists. Isolated instances are found also 
in Germany. But on the Continent, both in Protestant and 
Eoman Catholic schools, they were more of a secular kind, 
and taught reading and writing on slates. 



SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 



327 



It is interesting to trace how the thought was first suggested 
to Eaikes's mind. The accounts of the time are slightly differ- 
ent. According to one record, it was Mr. King, a working 
cardmaker of Dursley, who first brought it before him. He 
had himself tried to establish a Sunday School at Dursley, 
which failed for want of co-operation, though he never lost 
faith in his plan. 

When at Gloucester one Sunday he called upon Eaikes, 
and the two walked together by 'Hhe Island," one of the 
lowest parts in the city. There the ragged children were 
occupied in different kinds of sports. "What a pity," said 
King, " that the Sabbath should be so desecrated ! " But 
how," asked Eaikes, " can it be altered 1 " Sir, open a 
Sunday School, as I have done at Dursley, with the help of 
a few faithful journeymen ; only the multitude of business 
prevents my spending so much time in it as I could wish, as 
I feel I want rest." About this time Eaikes visited the 
prison at Gloucester. He found a young man there who 
was condemned to death for housebreaking. He had never, 
Eaikes foimd, received the smallest instruction. He had 
scarcely ever offered a prayer to his Creator. He only knew 
the name of God as a name to swear by. He was devoid of 
aU sense of a future state. The interview made a deep im- 
pression on Eaikes's mind. He found, on inquiry, how few 
of the young people of the city received any education what- 
ever. As he was walking one day in the street, and saying 
to himself, Can nothing be done ] " a voice seemed to say 
to him, "TEY," and he did try, and we know the result. 
Gathering together a number of the ragged children on a 
Sunday, he proposed first to teach them to read, and learn 
the Church Catechism, and take them to church. He em- 
ployed four women, who kept dame schools through the 
week, for a shilling each Sunday. The plan proved a success, 
and by the co-operation of the Eev. Thomas Stock, a clergy- 
man of Gloucester, and others, he was enabled to carry it on 
in a most vigorous spirit. The improvement in the town 



328 



SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 



tecame so marked, that the Bishop of the Diocese wrote 
Raikes a letter of grateful acknowledgment. In a short 
time the movement spread to other large towns in England. 
In 1785 it was taken up by a society in London, which may 
be called the parent of the present Sunday School Union, 
lie pursued tlie w^ork so long as strength permitted. A 
touching story is told of his old age. When seventy-two, 
he Avas walking one day, leaning on tlie arm of a friend, Mr. 
Joseph Lancaster, the chief pioneer of National Education. 
The old man led liis friend to the spot wdiere his first school 
was started. Pause Jiere^' he said, and uncovered his head ; 
whilst closing his eyes, he engaged for a moment in silent 
prayer. Then turning to ]\Ir. Lancaster, he said, and the tears 
rolled down his cheeks, '^This is the spot on which I stood, 
when I saw the desolation of the children, and the desecra- 
tion of the Sabbath by the inhabitants of the city. As I said 
to myself, ^ Can nothing be done]' a voice seemed to say, 
' TKY.* I did try, and now, ' What hath God wrought.' I 
never pass by this place where the word Try came so 
powerfully to my mind, without lifting up my hands and 
heart to heaven in gratitude to God, for having put such a 
thought into my mind." 

[At the time of the Centenary of Sunday Schools, a monu- 
ment was raised to Raikes's memory in Gloucester. He is repre- 
sented with a face open and beaming with love, worthy of 
the man, with his left hand pressing a Book to his heart, and 
a little girl by his side, over whom he has thrown his right 
arm with an air of protecting kindness.] 

What hath God wrought. In the Centenary Celebration 
of the commencement of Sunday Schools, the Archbishop of 
York, when addressing in St. Paul's Cathedral one of the 
largest congregations probably ever assembled within its 
walls, remarked on the words of the Gospel, *'Eeed my 
lambs:"— 

'^Tliat those present and others before them had been 
obeying the command for a century. We might fairly note 



SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 



329 



tliat some progress had been made about wbicb no misgiving 
need exist. A century since, England had sunk very low. 
Her religion had become but little more than a philosophy, 
in which the analogy of nature was invoked to show that it 
was most probable that there was a Deity. But where was 
the life of religion which was now evident] Scarcely a 
Mission was then sent out from England, and but few of her 
population could read. IS'ow 77 per cent, can read, and the 
numbers are daily increasing. There were about 10,000 clergy 
in the Church of England, and now she had 23,730. Since 
1840 about a million a year had been spent in building and 
improving churches. In 1780, Robert Raikes, a printer of 
Gloucester, arranged for some dame schools to be open on the 
Lord's Day, and he was aided by the vicar of the parish, a 
man of like faith. They discovered that the command of 
Jesus Christ was a living command, and they had His love in 
their hearts. There are now 500,000 Sunday school teachers in 
the country, teaching more than 5,000,000 children. But the 
movement has spread beyond the limits of England, and has 
crossed the Atlantic, and there are now known to be 1,500,000 
teachers instructing 12,000,000 of scholars, 6,000,000 of whom 
were in America. They were all volunteers, and if it were 
not the love of Christ which had brought them to do this, he 
could not say what it was." 

" The number of Sunday School teachers at present in the 
United Kingdom is, 500,369, with 4,615,453 scholars. 
Throughout the world there are 1,425,233 teachers, and 
12,107,312 scholars" {Pearl of Days\ 

If all the Sunday School teachers in England alone were 
paid one shilling a day, as Raikes first began, it would require 
a sum of £1,400,000, or more than the whole British con- 
tributions at present given every year to missionary work. 

In Europe a great work is now carried on, on the Con- 
tinent. In parts of France, e. g., where in 1865 there were 
only 35 Sunday Schools, there are now nearly 100. In all 
Erance there were 250, now about 1150. In Germany there 



SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 



are about 2000 schools, 8400 teachers, and 170,000 scholars. 
In Holland, where thej are very slow to receive suggestions 
from without, about 680 schools are in operation. In 
Sweden, ten years ago, there were not more than 10,000 
scholars attending the schools associated with the Local 
Union at Orebro. There are now 50,000 scholars connected 
with different societies throughout the countn'. There are 
10 or 12 Local L'nions in dilferent parts of the country, 
some of which employ missionaries, who work in the 
surrounding districts. Much interesting work and the con- 
version of many children has been repoiled, and the spiritual 
welfare of the children seem more watched over than in 
many countries which are better known. 

EiiiXEXT LAWYERS. It is sometimcs remarked, as a blessed 
testimony to the work, how many men, who have attained 
the highest distinction as lawyers, have found pleasure in 
encradn^ in Sundav School teachin:]^. In our own dav, the 

coo V O v ' 

present Lord Chancellor, Lord Selbome, is one, as were also 
the late Lord Chancellor, Lord Cairns, and before him Lord 
Hatherley. These, and a large host of men of mark, in 
different offices, and of great eminence, have found relief in 
turning from the great responsibilities of most import- 
ant posts, to scatter the seeds of truth in the minds of the 
young, and take their places in the file of Christian workers. 

A long list might be given of bishops, missionaries, and 
eminent workers of all fields of labour, who have been en- 
rolled in the list of Sunday School teachers. Henderson, 
and Paterson, who have done great wonders on the Continent 
as agents of the Bible Society, received their first impressions 
of Divine truth at the Sunday School The celebrated Dr. 
Morrison, the great missionary in the vast empire of China, 
who translated the whole of the Bible into Chinese, a language 
spoken by the largest associated nation in the world, was first 
converted and brought to the feet of Jesus in a Sabbath 
Soho:!. A good number of the Church ^Missionary's most 
devoted missionaries received an early training for future work 



SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 



331 



in the well- known Jesus Lane Sunday School at Cambridge. 
And who can tell how many Brainerds and Buchanans and 
Mart}TLS and Morrisons and Livingstones God is now train- 
ing in these schools, to become the blessed instruments in 
His hands of carrying out the message of His salvation 
thi"oughout the wide, wide world ! 

Alas ! there is not one. A Sunday School teacher in 
France was answering a note just received from his pastor. 
Evidently it was hard to do, for he began sheet after sheet, 
and tore them up. At last he wrote, Alas ! there is not 
oneP The pastor's note ran: ''Please tell me, as nearly as 
you can, how many scholars in 3'our class are in earnest as to 
the way of salvation, and how many have found peace with 
God these last two years ] 

The teacher was a most clever and able man. He took 
immense pains. The next lesson was Solomon's temple. 
He had studied every book he could get hold of, and written 
a long essay upon it, ending with " my peroration." 

Sunday came ; but it came to him with changed feelings ; 
he resolved, by God's help, to begin on a new plan. Before, 
he would have given all the measurements of the temple, 
dilated on the architecture, and grown eloquent upon the 
associations of so magnificent a building. But now he saw 
his opportunity in a different spirit. The change was soon 
perceived by the scholars. At first, some fell off, and thought 
it showed too little intellect for them. He pursued them 
with kind words, letters, and visits. Of the rest, several 
were really won, and led to embrace the truth in Jesus. By- 
and-by some of the old scholars came back, and it pleased 
God to open their hearts also, and thus a new work began 
in his class, and in the school. 

A GOOD TESTiMOXY. " A distingnished Christian lady was 
recently spending a few weeks in an hotel in America, when 
an attempt was made to induce her to attend a dance, that it 
might have the prestige of her presence. After resisting the 
importunities of all her friends, a Senator tried to persuade 



332 



SWEARING. 



her, urging it was quite * a harmless affair/ and her presence 
would be most welcome. ' Senator/ said the lady, * I cannot 
do it ; I am a Christian, and I never do anything in my 
summer vacation, or wherever I go, that will injure the 
influence I have over my girls in my Sunday School class. 
The Senator bowed, and said : * Madam, I honour you ; if 
there were more Christians like you, more men like myself 
would become Christians'" {Rev. J. Porteous), 

SWEAPtlXG. 

llowLAND IIiLL was oucc returning from Ireland, and 
found himself much annoyed by the conduct of the captain 
and mate, who were both given to the habit of swearing. 
First the captain swore at the mate, then the mate at the 
captain ; then they both swore at the wind, when Mr. Hill 
called out, with a strong voice, for fair play : Stop, stop,*' 
I cried : " if you please, gentlemen, let us have fair play ; 
it's my turn now." " At what is your turn ] " asked the 
captain. At swearing.'" Well, they waited, and waited, 
till their patience was exhausted, and then told me to make 
haste and take my turn. I told them that I had a right to 
take my own time. To this the captain replied, with a 
laugh, Perhaps you don't mean to take your turn at all ] " 
Pardon me, captain,*' I answered, "that I do, as soon as I 
can find the good of doing so." Mr. Hill did not hear 
another oath for the rest of the voyage. 

The coachman and his prayer. A gentleman says : " I 
had taken the box-seat of a stage-coach. The driver soon 
began to swear. I said : ^ Coachman, do you ever pray ] ' 
He seemed displeased, and whipping the horses, he sat as if 
he wished not to reply to me. I repeated the question. * If 
you want to know,' said he, ' I sometimes go to church on a 
Sunday ; I suppose I pray there, don't I ] ' * Did you pray 
this morning that God would keep you from blaspheming 
His !N'ame li ' * !N'o ; I did not.* * Then I am afraid you 
never pray at all ; for no man can swear as you do, and yet 



SWEARINa. 



333 



keep lip the habit of praying to God.' As we now rode 
along, he seemed thoughtful. * Coachman, I wish you would 
pray now,' I said. * Why, what a time to pray, sir, when 
a man is driving- a coach.' * Yet, my friend, God will 
hear you.* He was somewhat moved at the appeal. * What 
shall I pray for 1 ' he asked in a subdued tone. * Pray these 
words: Lord, grant me Thy Holy Spirit, for Christ's sake. 
Amen."' He hesitated; but in a moment he repeated them; 
and then, at my request, a second, and a third time. When 
I arrived at the end of my journey, I parted from him, never 
expecting to meet him again on earth. 

" Some months passed, and, being in another part of the 
country, a man looked intently on me, and said with a smile, 
' Don't you know me, sir ] ' I said I did not. * Ah, sir, I 
have much reason to be thankful that I ever knew you. He 
then recounted the particulars of our first meeeing, and added : 
* I bless God I ever travelled with you. The prayer you 
taught me on the coach-box I believe was answered. I saw 
myself a lost and ruined sinner ; but now I humbly hope, 
through the blood that cleanseth from all sin, and by the 
power of the Holy Spirit, I am a converted man.' After 
some explanation, he went on to say : ' Eoth my wife and 
daughter have also been brought to Jesus. Stop not in your 
good work, sir, of speaking to poor sinners as you spoke to 
me on that coach ; but for your reproof and instruction I 
might still have been in the broad road to destruction.' " 

A JUST REPROOF. There lived in Yorkshire a good man, 
who lived by carrying goods from one part of the country to 
another. He had in his employ several drivers. One morn- 
ing, coming early into the yard, he found one of them pre 
paring to start on a journey, and swearing at the horses in 
the most dreadful manner. In a quiet, but firm, manner, 
the master rebuked his servant, and said, ^^Tom, it is very 
wrong of you thus to take God's Name in vain ; but if you 
must swear, wait till you get beyond the turnpike-gate, on 
the far moor, where no one can hear but God and yourself." 



SYMPATHY. 



The man seemed very much ashamed, and started on his 
journey. As he went along he could not but think how 
wrong he had been by giving way to his temper. At length 
lie reached the turnpike-gate, and got upon the open moor : the 
desolate plain was before him, not a house or person to be 
seen. There he was alone, and his master's words came 
ringing in his eai*s : **Now swear, when none can hear but 
God and yourself." He became strongly impressed with 
the thought that God had heard liim, and that His all-seeing 
eye was then looking into his heart ; and he could not rest 
without lifting up an earnest prayer for God's forgiving 
mercy. He came back from ^lanchester an altered man. 
His master soon noticed the serious countenance, and asking 
him what was the matter, Tom told him of the efTect his 
wise words had had, and that he hoped he should never 
SA car again. 

SYMPATHY. 

" We read that in certain climates of the world, the gales 
that spring from the land carry a refreshing smell out to 
sea, and assure the watchful pilot that he is approaching a 
desirable and fruitful coast, when as yet he cannot discern it 
with his eyes. And in like manner it fares with those who 
have steadily and religiously pursued the course which 
Heaven pointed out to them. We shall sometimes find, by 
their conversation at the end of their days, that they are 
tilled with hope, and peace, and joy ; which, like those re- 
freshing gales and reviving odours to the seamen, are breathing 
forth from Paradise upon their souls, and give them to 
understand with certainty that God is bringing them into their 
desired haven" {Townson). 

The sympathetic nerve. In the human body there is 
a most important complex nerve, called by anatomists, the 
great sympathetic^ which has for its office to connect and 
harmonize the various functions of divers organs ; it does 
not exist only to register sensations, but to regulate many 



SYMPATHY. 



335 



parts in the unity of vital action. "What this nerve is to the 
natural body, such is sympathy to that mystic organization, 
of which the Apostle speaks, adding : * ^o^Y ye are the body 
of Christ, and members in particular ' (Dr. Flavel Coolc), 

-^OLiAN HARP. *^The most Christlike character appears 
to me as an ^olian harp, which gives forth notes of music, 
bright or sad, to every breeze which touches the responsive 
chords ; or, as a lake amid the mountains, which mirrors 
every tree and rock on its bosom ; the dark crags on high, 
the changing clouds and heaven's unchanging blue above the 
whole " {Ihid.\ 

" Stand-off-ness is pronounced among the crying evils of 
Sunday School life, but such a spirit cannot exist to very great 
extent side by side w4th that of sympathy ; which, like iodine 
or carbolic acid, purifies of many noxious elements the moral 
atmosphere around it. When there is a full and expressed 
sympathy in any body of teachers, there will then be real 
work, and real heartiness and pleasure in the doing of it ; 
when there is little or no sympathy, there may be the sem- 
blance of work, but nothing more — a phantom which mocks 
you as you try to grasp it. I^^ever shall we forget the look 
and -words of a gentleman, who was once vividly describing 
the contrast between his experience in a school where " no 
one seemed to take any notice of him,^' with that of another 
school, in which, directly he was admitted a teacher, he 
realized the power of sympathy ; adding with deep emotion, 
" they are so diffei^ent ' " {Rev. G. H. Sporres). 

False sympathy is very injurious to the character. This 
is often said to be one of the chief evils of pathetic works of 
fiction, that they tend to create a feeling of pity or indignation, 
without calling it into action, by relieving distress, or resist- 
ing oppression. 

Want of sympathy between employer and employed is one 
of the great evils of the present day. The political economist 
says, that the relationship of master and servant is a money 
engagement — so much service — so much wages. They ignore 



336 



SYMPATHY. 



the social tie and mutual sympathy which every Christian 
man should feel. I almost doubt," says Sir Arthur Helps, 
" whether the head of a family does not do more mischief if 
he is unsympathetic, than even if he were unjust." 

As a rule, men are won to better things, not so much by 
truth in the abstract, as by the Divine inspiration that comes 
through human goodness and sympathy. This is the touch 
of nature, that makes all the world akin." 

Few things have more helped the cause of missions in 
India and China of late years, than the great sympathy shown 
to the people in the time of need. In the famine which raged 
so fearfully in India a few years ago, when there perished 
according to the ' Times,* in the Presidency of Madras, 
3,000,000 persons; in Mysore, 1,250,000; in Bombay, 
1,000,000: £800,000 was sent from England to relieve the 
sufferers, and was administered with the greatest fairness. 
Comparing the practical kindness of Cliristian missionaries 
with the hard seltishness of heathen priests, we do not 
wonder to find them saying : We can understand Chris- 
tians showing sympathy and help to their fellow-Christians 
in time of need, but it is indeed wonderful that they should 
show such great and noble compassion to the heathen. There 
must indeed he a mi'jhty power in their religion.'* 

The same result was found in the Xorth-east of China, 
where 12,000.000 perished through the famine. Thousands 
of pounds were collected in England and in Asia, and distri- 
buted through the missionaries with such self-sacrifice, that 
five fell victims to their noble efforts. To show their gratitude, 
one large and splendid temple of the gods in the district of 
the Xorth, was placed at the disposal of the missionaries. 
They at once turned it into a Christian temple. (See Cliinese 
Missions, Xovember 1879.) 

Making others happy. A mother who was in the habit 
of asking her children, before they retired at night, what 
they had done to make others happy, found her two young 
daughters silent. 



TAXES. 



837 



She spoke tenderly of habits and dispositions founded on 
the golden rule, — *^Do unto others as you would have them 
do unto you." Still, these bright little faces were bowed in 
silence, and the question was repeated. 

" I cannot remember anything good all this day, dear 
mother,'' said one of the little girls ; " only one of my class- 
mates was happy, because she had gained the head of the 
class, and I smiled on her, and ran to kiss her. She said I 
was good. That is all, dear mother. 

The other spoke still more tenderly : — " A little girl, who 
sat with me on the bench at school, lost a little brother ; and 
I saw that, while she studied her lessons, she hid her face in 
the book and wept. I felt sorry, and laid my face on the 
same book, and wept with her. Then she looked up, and 
was comforted, and put her arms around my neck; but I do 
not know why she said I had done her good.'* 

It is a remarkable circumstance, but a true one, that joy is 
increased by the same thing that lessens sorrow, viz. by 
sharing it with another. Every man rejoices twice,'' says 
Jeremy Taylor, ^' when he has a partner of his joy. A friend 
shares my sorrow, and takes half of it away ; but he shares 
my joy, and makes it double." 

— OF Christ Jesus. How sweet to remember that 
Jesus feels with us in everything that tries or vexes, whether 
it be real or imaginary. Frequently when we go to our 
earthly friends for consolation, they may think our trouble 
an imaginary one ; then they tell us to make ourselves happy. 
Far different is it with Jesus. ]^o thing that troubles ns is too 
insignificant to grieve Him, and whether it be real or whether 
it be suffered wrong, how sweet to find that whoever else 
condemns, He soothes, He calms, and He sympathizes 
{Ruby). 

TAXES. 

The heaviest. " The taxes are heavy indeed," said Dr. 
Franklin, and if those laid on by Government were the only 



338 



TEMPER. 



ones we had to pay, we might more easily discharge them ; 
hut we have many others and much more grievous to some 
of US. We are taxed twice as much by our idleness, three 
times as mucli by our pride, and four times as much by our 
folly ; and from these taxes the Commissioners cannot ease or 
deliver us by allowing any abatement." 

Luxuries. Of the taxes affecting wealth and industry, 
amounting in all to about £23,000,000, the working classes 
do not i)ay more than half a million ; of the taxes on neces- 
saries, tliey may possibly pay £2,500,000; but of the taxes 
on luxui iL'S, including spirits, malt, tobacco, they pay their 
full quota. 

TEMPER. 

A London merchant had a dispute with a Quaker about 
a bill ; the merchant said he would go to law about it ; the 
Quaker tried all means to keep him from doing so. One 
morning the Quaker resolved to make a last attempt, and 
called at the merchant's house, and asked the servant if his 
master was at home. The merchant heard him, and knowing 
his voice, called out from the stairs, Tell that rascal I am 
not at home." The Quaker, looking up to him, calmly said, 

AVell, friend, God grant thee a better mind." The merchant 
was struck ^Yith. the meekness of the reply ; looked again into 
the disputed bill, and found that the Quaker was right and 
he was wrong. He called to see him, and after confessing 
his error, said, have one question to ask you, * How were 
you able so often to bear my abuse with patience ] ' " Eriend,'* 
said the other, I will tell thee: I had once as hot a temper 
as thou hast ; I knew that to yield to the temper was sinful, 
and I found that it was unwise. I noticed that men in a 
passion always spoke loud ; and I thought that if I could 
control my voice, I should keep my passion. I have there- 
fore made it a rule never to let my voice rise above a certain 
key, and by carefully observing the rule, I have, by .God's 
help, mastered my temper.'* 



TEMPERANCE MOVEMENT. 



839 



^* Passion," says South, '^is the drunkenness of the mind." 

*^The last thing that grace overcomes {Hannah More), 
He is happy whose circumstances suit his temper, but he 
is more excellent who can suit his temper to his circum- 
stances.'' 

(For ceildren). Did you ever see your face when you 
were in a passion ] One day a tiger came out of his jungle 
in India, to see if he could get something to eat. He was 
very hungry, and crept along to a tent, where two little 
children lay fast asleep. He was just going to take one of 
them, when he caught sight of his own face in a large look- 
ing-glass. He did not know that it was his own face, and it 
looked so fierce and ugly that he growled at it. Then it 
seemed to him as if it growled back in return, so he roared 
out, and of course he opened his great mouth and showed his 
teeth. The tiger in the looking-glass did the same, and this 
made him so angry that he dashed at it, shivered the glass 
into a thousand fragments, and was so frightened when he 
saw this done, that he ran away to the jungle, and left the 
little children unhurt. 

TEMPEEAXCE MOVEMENT. 

The history of, in England forms an interesting and ro- 
mantic chapter in our national annals. The practice of 
total abstinence may be traced to very remote ages. It was 
maintained by many amongst the Egyptians, the Chinese, 
the Buddhists of India, the Persians, the Mahommedans; 
and in more modern times by societies based upon this prin- 
ciple in the middle ages ; and in many Eomish monasteries, 
and ancient institutions. 

What, however, is generally known as the ^'Temperance 
Movement," is the outgrowth of the present century. It is 
said to have commenced in America, in the State of i^ew 
Jersey, by the formation of a " Sober Society," in 1805 ; and 
afterwards in New York State, in 1808, when a "Tem- 
perate Society " was formed, enjoining abstinence from spirits 

Z 2 



§40 



TEMPERANCE MOVEMENT. 



and wine, except at public dinners ! Eight years after, 
[Massachusetts followed with another society, to prevent the 
too free use of ardent spirits." Thirteen years later (1816) 
the American Society for the promotion of Temperance was 
started in the same State, upon the basis of abstinence from 
ardent s})irits only — a pledge, which in a few years was 
widened to include abstinence from all intoxicating beverages. 
News of the American anti-spirit movement soon crossed the 
Atlantic. It travelled to Ireland, and at a place called 
Skibereen, the first temperance society established in the 
United Kingdom was formed in 1817 — a total abstinence 
society from ardent spirits, wine, and malt liquor, unless 
prescribed by priest or doctor. The next place to take up 
the cause was Scotland, where Mr. John Dunlop carried on 
the work with great vigour; and in 1819, two maiden ladies, 
a Miss Allen and Miss Graham, formed a Female Temperance 
Society. From this time the work began in England. The 
first chief mover was Mr. Henry Forbes, a Bradford merchant, 
who in the way of business had visited Glasgow, where the 
movement was beginning to take root. He came back to his 
own town, anxious that his fellow-townsmen should enter 
into the same alliance. On the 2nd day of February, 1830, 
he got a few men to sign the pledge of abstinence from ardent 
spirits; on the 5th a few more signed, and on the 14th of 
July, 1830, the first inaugural meeting was held, though the 
society was dated as having started on February 2nd, when 
the first few members were enrolled. On next April 4th, 
the second society in England was formed at Warrington, and 
shortly afterwards societies were established at Manchester, 
Leeds, Liverpool, and London; the standard being planted 
in London by William Collins, the well-known Glasgow 
publisher. In 1831, the historical seven men of Preston 
started the total abstinence pledge, of whom one ^Ir. Joseph 
Livesey still survives. The late Mr. James Silk Bucking- 
ham, M.P. for Sheffield, was among the first promoters of 
the cause in London. He was the first to introduce the 



TEMPEEANCE MOVEMENT. 



341 



question in the House of Commons. An interesting record 
is preserved of the first great meeting held in London to pro- 
mote teetotal principles. Mr. Buckingham presided. A large 
number of working men attended to protest against the new 
views, on the ground that the disuse of all beer would be an 
invasion of the rights and privileges of the working-classes, and 
that work could not be done without such beverages. After 
some discussion on the possibility of dispensing with stimu- 
lants, Mr. Buckingham put the question, " Did you ever 
try?'' The result was that they agreed to try a month of 
entire abstinence, and hold a second meeting. A month passed, 
and a second meeting was held in the same place, when they 
gave in their testimony. They had found the experiment, to 
their surprise, so successful, that they determined to keep on 
with it, and then on conviction became themselves total 
abstainers. 

Since that time to the present the temperance cause has 
spread, and continues to spread with a steady but ever- 
advancing progress. In 1835 the British Temperance Leagus 
was formed, which is now the oldest temperance league in the 
world. In the same year the Order of Rechabites was formed, 
and is now the oldest benefit society in the world. In 1840 
the Temperance and General Provident Institution was 
formed, which has proved that the lives of teetotalers are 
longer than those of moderate drinkers, and has a capital of 
£2,500,000. In 1854 the Temperance Land and Building 
Society was formed, its property being free from public- 
houses ; and since it started it has received about £6,000,000, 
and advanced more than £3,000,000. 

Besides these a large number of Temperance Societies have 
been established in connection with the Church of England, 
the Wesleyans, Baptists, and many different sections of the 
community, and the good influence seems telling upon the 
country more rapidly every year. 

At the annual meeting of the Manchester Diocesan branch 
of the Church of England Temperance Society in 1882, where 



342 



TEMPTATION. 



one of the attractions was the advocacy of E. Payson 
AVeston, the great pedestrian, who while undergoing his 
great exertion, practised complete abstinence from any intoxi- 
cants, — the Bisliop of Carlisle gave some interesting sketches ; 
first, as regards the number of persons summarily proceeded 
against for drunkenness in England between 187G — 1881. He 
fouml, so far from tlie nundjers increasing, notwithstanding the 
increase of the population, it had gone down from 200,000 to 
174,000, e. 25,000 on the right side. Again, taking the 
offences against the Licensing Act ; in 1876 they were nearly 
1G,000 : in 1881 they had gone down to 14,000. As to the 
revenue; in 1874 the money spent upon drink was over 
£141,000,000; in 1881 it had come down to £127,000,000, 
a very remarkable redaction, esi)ecially when it is considered 
that a very large portion of the money was spent in that which 
lie would call lawful expiiuditure, i. c. expenditure which had 
nothing to do with drunkenness. It was interesting to notice 
the consumption of other articles. In 1874 the number of 
lbs. of tea used was 137,000,000 ; in 1881 it had risen to 
100,225,000, or 4*54 lbs per head of the population. Cocoa, 
in like manner, had increased from 8,800,000 lbs. to 
10,800,000. In addition to which must be added the 
progress made in counter-attractions ; the different tone 
of feeling everywhere as to temperance principles, and the 
growing inclination towards Sunday closing of public-houses. 

According to Mr. Hoyle the cost per head of the population 
of the United Kingdom for intoxicating liquors was in 1876, 
£4 9.^.; for 1880, £3 lOs. Ik?.; for 1881, £3 Us. lOd. ; 
for 1882, £3 II5. 7d. 

TEMPTATION. 

A USEFUL ORDEAL. l>[o man was ever worth much who 
did not pass through some severe ordeal. A mushroom or a 
cucumber may be raised in a summer-house, not so the oak. 
"When you want that to grow, you plant it on the mountain 
slope, where it strikes its roots deep into the soil, and becomes 



TEMPTATION. 



343 



more compact in its fibre because of the resistance it offers to 
the passing storm. The human frame, if it is to acquire 
strength, must not be for years wrapped in swaddling-clothes, 
but trained to run in the race and to wrestle in the strife. 
The good soldier is not made in time of peace ; the qualities 
he must acquire, the self-possession, and the courage, and the 
ste'ady hand, and the clear eye, the capability of endurance, 
are formed in actual conflict with the foe. Even so our 
graces are strengthened by temptation — our prayers, our 
humility, our sense of dependance, our faith and confidence 
in God, and all the qualities which adorn the Christian life. 
It removes our impurity as the fire severs the dross from the 
gold. And when from the furnace the good man comes forth, 
with his passions subdued by suffering, and all his graces 
rendered brighter and more prominent by the trial through 
which he has passed, even bystanders are struck with the 
improvement which has been wrought ; his very features and 
tones have become expressive of a heavenlier and Diviner 
life'' {D7\ Landels). 

" To HAVE ALMIGHTY POWER engaged for us, and we to 
throw ourselves out of it by bold sallies in the mouth of 
temptation ! The saints' falls have been when they have 
run out of their trench and stronghold ; for, like the conies, 
they are a weak people in themselves, and their strength lies 
in the rock of God's almightiness, which is their habitation " 
[Gurncdl), 

Carnivorous plants. One of the wonders of nature is 
that class of plants that live on insects. Their singular 
adaptation of shape is remarkable ; and more wonderful still, 
their change of colour to a red, just like raw flesh, by which 
the hapless insect is tempted to its destruction. A great 
naturalist found by the microscope in one single specimen 
the skeletons of 101 insects. 

One of the greatest qualities of a good general is the 
power of estimating the strength and stratagems of the foe. 



344 



TEMPTATION. 



Some of the most dangerous temptations come in the form 
of apparent and plausible good. 

The dangers of mountain climbers are sometimes a 
picture of the variety of temptations to whicli we are all 
exj)0sed. Tin.' re is ihd inducement when on a dizzy cr ig 
to climb a little higher — to reach some untrodden point, 
and make ourselves a name for courage : the temptation 
of ambition ; there is the temptation to risk our safety by 
plucking the fair flower that overhangs the precipice, though 
we feel the ground is treacherous : the tempUition after 
pleasure ; there is the temptation to yield to the inducement 
to sleej), the ellect of intense cold, at times almost irresistible, 
though travellers know the result may be fatal ; and so on. 

Little temptations. John Kewton says, very truly: 

Satan seldom comes to real Christians with great tempta- 
tions, or with a temptation to commit a great sin. You 
bring a gi-een log and a candle together, and they are very 
good neighbours ; but bring a few shavings and set them 
alight, and then bring a few small sticks and let them take 
fire, and the log in the midst of them, and you will soon get 
rid of your log. So it is with little sins. You would be 
startled with the idea of committing a great sin, so the devil 
brings you a little temptation, and leaves you to indulge 
yourself. * There is no great harm in this,' or * no great peril 
in that;' and so by these little chips we are first easily 
lighted up, and the green log is burned." 

An enemy, before he besiegeth a city, surroundeth it at a 
distance, to see where the wall is the weakest, best to be 
battered, easiest to be scaled ; where the ditch is narrowest 
to be bridged, shallowest to be waded over ; what place is 
not regularly fortified, where he may approach with least 
danger, and assault with most advantage. So Satan walketh 
about, surveying all the powers of our souls, where he may 
most probably lay his temptations ; as whether our under- 
standings are easily corrupted with success, or our wills with 
frowardness, or our affections with excess " {Sjyencer). 



TEMPTATION. 



345 



If Satan doth fetter us, it is indifferent to him whether it 
is bj a cable or a hair : nay, perhaps the smallest sins are 
his greatest stratagems {Fuller), 

It is a singular point in human nature that men are 
afraid of breaking down where they are strongest, but they 
are seldom afraid of their weaknesses. If a man is hard he 
fears softness. A proud man watches lest he should let 
himself down ; a selfish man is vigilant against being tempted 
by profuse kindness. And no man has a more salutary fear 
of rash generosity, than he whose pores are sealed so tight 
that the sense of prosperity cannot open them. Men are apt 
to guard themselves where it is unlikely that they should 
be overcome ; but they are quite careless of those open 
avenues through which temptations come and go so easily, 
that they are unconscious of wrong-doing because they are 
not pained by it. 

The death ring. It was a horrible practice in the Italian 
States, three or four hundred years ago, to use what were 
called death rings. " If one man hated another, and desired 
to murder him, ho would present him wdth one of these 
rings ; in the inside was a drop of deadly poison, and a very 
small hole, out of which it could not make its way except it 
was squeezed. When the man was wearing it, the murderer 
would come and shake his hand violently ; the lion's claw 
would give his finger a little scratch, and in a few hours he 
was a dead man (Neale's Sermon for Children), 

Their personal suitability. " The devil doth not know 
the hearts of men, but he may feel their pulse, know their 
temper, and so accordingly can apply himself. As the 
husbandman knows what seed is proper to sow in such a soil ; 
so Satan, finding out the temper, knows what temptation is 
proper to sow in such a heart. That way the tide of a 
man's constitution runs, that way the wind of temptation 
blows. Satan tempts the ambitious man with a crown, the 
sanguine man with beauty, the covetous man with a wedge 



316 



THANKFULNESS. 



of gold. lie provides savoury meat, sucli as the sinner 
loves" (T. Watson). 

TniK. God ealls men when they are busy; Satan when 
lie finds them idle. If Satan catcli any one idle, he is sure 
to find him work. 

Quench the first spark. It has been well said, — during 
the terrible fire wliich two centuries ago laid one half of 
London in allies, wliich defied for days and days the efforts 
of thousands of strong men, there was a moment when a 
pitcher of water from the hands of a little child might have 
quenched it. 

THANKFULNESS. 

A thankful mind will always find something to be thankful 
for. 

Count up your mercies is a better exercise for a troubled 
mind than thinking how many have been withheld or with- 
drawn. 

The Lord spreads a large table every day, and those that 
eat of it are chiefly living in rebellion against Him. 

— Is principally concerned with the goodness of God. We 
adore God when we bless Him for all His attributes, for His 
wisdom, His faithfulness — yea, even for His justice ; but we 
thank Him chiefly for the manifestation of His goodness. 

A FARMER one morning went to church and heard the 
words read, The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his 
master^s crib, but Israel doth not know, my people doth not 
consider.'* The conviction came to him of his own unthank- 
fulness to the Divine giver of all good. He went home, and 
entering the farm-yard, a favourite cow came forward and 
licked his hand. Strong man as he was, the tears rushed to 
his eyes as he thought, " Why, that's it ! That poor creature 
knows me, and is grateful to me, and yet I have never thought 
of my God, nor been grateful to Him for all He has done 
for me.'' 

At a Wcsleyan love-feast in Yorkshire, a good man had 



THANKSGIVING^ NATIOXAL. 



347 



been drawing out a long complaining strain of experiences 
about the trials and difficulties in the way to heaven. Another 
of a different spirit followed, who said, " I see our brother who 
has just sat down lives in Grumbling Street. I lived there 
myself for some time, and never enjoyed good health. The 
air is bad, the houses bad, the water bad ; the birds never 
came and sang in the streets, and I was gloomy and sad 
enough. But I flitted. I got into Thanksgiving Street, and 
ever since then I have had good health, and so have my 
family. The air is pure, the water good, the houses good ; 
the sun shines in it all day ; the birds are always singing, 
and I am as happy as I can live. IsTow I recommend our 
brother to ' fiit.^ There are plenty of houses to let in 
Thanksgiving Street, and I am sure he will find himself a 
new man if he will only come, and I will be right glad to 
have him as a neighbour " (Dictionary of Illustrations). 

THANKSGIYI^^G, l^ATIONAL. 

Memorable days of public thanksgiving in our country : — 
1588. Sept. 8 and Nov. 24. For the defeat of the Spanish 
Armada. 

1702. ISjov. 12. ) For the great victories under the Duke of 
1704. Sept. 7. ] Marlborough. 

1789. April 23. For George III. recovering from serious 
illness. 

1797. Dec. 19. For the naval victories under Admiral 
Duncan. 

1854. Oct. 1. For the abundant harvest. 

1872. Feb. 27. For the recovery of the Prince or Wales. 

THEATEES. 

In Great Britain, in 1876, there were 156 theatres. In 
London alone, in 1877, there were 57 theatres, and 415 
music-halls, capable of holding 312,000 people, or about 
one-twelfth of the whole population. 

Cost of. At the annual meeting of the Manchester 



348 



THIEVES. 



Statistical Society, a short time ago, a paper was read by Mr. 
W. C. Avon on the cost of theatrical amusements. It was 
stated that the cost in 1881 was estimated at about 
£2,929,000. 

Copenhagen". Inscription over the theatre : " Xot for 
pleasure only." 

THIEVES. 

r>y the judicial statistics for 1881 the number of known 
thieves at large in England and Wales was 20,627 ; of re- 
ceivers, 2294; suspects, 27,223 ; in all, 50,144, which is 
probably under the mark, an<l is exclusive of the large 
numbers in prison. In 18G9 the number was 54,249; in 
1879, 41,013. In the hope of reclaiming such, there are 54 
reformatory schools, and the number of offenders committed 
to these in 1879 was 1250, of whom 214 were girls. There 
are 90 industrial schools, including 7 ships fitted for that 
purpose, which contained 959G children in 1878, and 10,090 
in 1879; the total cost being £188,533, towards which the 
parents contributed £11,442. 

It is said a large proportion of liabitual thieves die between 
30 — 35 years of age, mostly from consumption. 

Dr. Barnardo says : "It is estimated that every convicted 
thief costs the country about £80. In his establishment 
it costs about £16. 

It may give some idea of the barbarism of former days to 
find, in E^nglish history, that in the reign of Henry VIII. no 
less than 72,000 great and petty thieves" were hanged. 

THOUGHT. 

The general acknowledgment of persons to the want of 
thought, is stamped upon many of the familiar remarks we 
are always hearing. " I never gave it a thought ! " "I didn't 
think of it ! " Yes, I might have thought of that." If 
only I'd thought of it in time ! " 

Or again, people often excuse their practical inattention 



TIME. 



349 



to the serious claims of religion by saying, I have my 
thoughts;^' *^Yes, I've often thought of that." But what 
do such thoughts lead to] How many go on, year after 
year, saying, " I have my thoughts ; " but thoughts never 
lead to action ; the passing thought never ripens into real 
decision. 

The thoughts that are always working within our minds 
have been compared to the work going on in a bee-hive, 
• — opaque hefore men. We know there are a multitude of 
thoughts constantly working in the mind and out of it, 
though what work they do inside we cannot tell. But hefore 
God we are as glass bee-hives, where all is exposed, and the 
restless work within is all before His eyes. 

Buddha. It was his saying : All that we are is the result 
of our thought ; it is founded on our thoughts ; it is made 
up of thought. If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, 
pain follows him, as the wheels follow the foot of him who 
draws the carriage.'' 

Look to your sails. The wind that swells them out will 
show which way you are going ; so of our actions and our 
thoughts. 

To SET MEN THINKING is oue of the principal objects a 
teacher or a preacher should have before him. 

Labour and thought. " It is only by labour that thought 
can be made healthy, and only by thought that labour can 
be made happy; and the two cannot be separated with 
impunity" {Ruskin). 

TliME. 

A WISE MAN always wants to lengthen time ; a fool, to 
shorten it. 

Many who find the day too long, complaia that life is too 
short. 

We might divide the world into two great classes — the 
Timeists — if we may coin such a word — those who are living 
only for time ; and the Eternalists, those who are living for 



350 



TIME. 



eternity, and who have already begun an eternal life of 
happiness in Christ. 

"Every day," says Bishop Kail, is a little life, and our 
whole life is Init a day repeated ; wlience it is that old Jacob 
numbered his life by days, and Closes desired to be taught 
tliis })oint of lu»ly arithmetic, to number not his years, but 
liis days. Those, therefore, that dare lose a day are danger- 
ously prodigal ; and those that dare misspend it, desperate." 

Richard ])axter was eminent, amidst all his peculiar 
labours, for his habit of redi^emiiig the time. It used to bo 
said, that a month with him was more than a year with 
many." 

Arxaui-D, one of the Port Royalist divines, visiting Nicole, 
another divin(% to assist him in a new work, the latter ob- 
served : \Ve are now old, is it not time to rest ] " " Rest," 
answered Arnauld ; " have we not all eternity to rest inV* 

Make good use of time if you love eternity ; reflect that 
past time cannot be recalled ; to-morrow cannot be depended 
on ; to-day only is yours, wliicli, if you procrastinate, you lose ; 
which lost, is lost for ever. 

Time is the cradle of n()PE, but the grave of delusion. 
Time is the stern corrector of fools, but the salutary counsel- 
lor of the wise. Wisdom walks before it; opportunity, with 
its repentance, behind it. He that has made time his friend, 
will have little to fear from his enemies ; but he that has 
made time his enemy, ^\ill have little to hope for from his 
friends" (Bullar). 

Lord 'W'^illiam Russell. The anecdote has been often told 
of him, that when he came to the place of execution, he gave 
his watch to his chaplain, saying : " Take it in remembrance 
of me. I shall no more want a time-piece ; I am going into 
eternity." 

Hexry ]\Iartyx was known, because of his indefatigable 
industry, as "the man who never lost a day." 

Jonathan Edwards. The same was true of him. One of 
the rules he made for his own conduct was, Xever to lose a 



TIME. 



351 



moment of time, but to improve it in every possible way he 
could. 

" Mrs. Hannah More/' says ber biographer, after pointing 
out to us some of the beautiful objects to be seen from the 
room in which we were sitting, conducted us into an adjoin- 
ing apartment, which was her sleeping-room, and, pointing to 
an arm-chair, ' That chair,* she said, ' I call my home. Here' 
(looking out of a window) ' is what I call my moral prospect. 
You see that distant hill which limits the prospect in that 
direction 1 You see this tree before my window, directly in 
range of the hilH The tree, you observe, from being near, 
appears higher than the hill, which is distant, though the 
hill actually is much higher than the tree. jSTow this tree 
represents to my mind the objects of time, and that hill, 
the objects of eternity. The former, like the tree, from being 
viewed near at hand, appears great. The latter, like the 
distant hill, appears small'" {Trench). 

Eedeeming the time. Mr. Bradford, the martyr, counted 
that hour lost wherein he did not some good, either with his 
pen, tongue, or purse. Ignatius, when he heard a clock 
strike, used to say, ISTow I have one hour more to answer 
for.'' So the primitive Christians would redeem some time 
from their sleep, that they might be with God in their closets, 
as Clement observes. And so Seneca used to say, ^'Time is 
the only thing that we can innocently be covetous of ; and yet 
there is nothing of which many are more lavishly and pro- 
fusely prodigal." When Titus Vespasian, who revenged 
Christ's blood on Jerusalem, returned victor to Eome, remem- 
bering one night as he sat at supper, that he had done no 
good that day, he uttered this memorable and praiseworthy 
apophthegm: Amici diem perdicW My friends, I have 
lost a day "). Chilo, one of the seven sages, being asked 
what was the hardest thing in the world to be done, answered, 
" To use and employ a man's time well." Cato held that an 
account must be given not of our labour but of our leisure. 
And i^lian gives the testimony of the Lacedemonians^ They 



352 



TIME. 



were hugely covetous of their time, spending it all abont 
necessary things, and suffering no citizen either to be idle 
or play." ** And," saith another, " we trifle with that which 
is most precious, and throw away that which is our greatest 
interest to redeem " (Brooke). 

Useful calculations. A man who has lived 50 years 
will have passed through 20,297,280 minutes, or 438,000 
hours, not reckoning the extra time in leap-years. Making 
the most liberal allowance for time spent in sleep, eating, and 
amusement, &c., what a large amount tliis leaves to be 
accounted for ! 

If during 50 years (and many have livid far beyond 
this) one liaU'-liour a day were devoted to the pursuit of any 
special subject, it will amount to 910G hours, or 910 days of 
10 hours each, or 2h years, ^lany could spare much more 
tlian this, besides their regular work. How much miglit 
thus be accomplished by such economy of precious hours too 
frequently trifled away ! 

If two persons rise, one at six, the other at seven in the 
morning, both going to bed at the same time, and all other 
things being equal, the earlier riser adds to the length of 
each year 305 hours, or 24^ days; or in the course of 50 
years 3 J years; besides being in better health of body, and 
presumably wiser in mind. 

If we reckon the value of time as for every hour redeemed 
from bed each day at sixpence, it would amount in the course 
of 50 years to £450 55., without any interest or compound 
interest. 

If any one throw away a few minutes of the day foolishly, 
reckoning 8 working houre in the day, and 313 working 
days every year, every 5 minutes wasted mounts in the 
year to 3 days, 2 hours, 5 minutes ; every 10 minutes wasted 
to days, 4 hours, 10 minutes; every 20 minutes wasted to 
12 days, 8 hours, and 20 minutes ; every 30 minutes wasted 
to 18 days, 12 hours, and 30 minutes. Losing a quarter of an 
hour every day means 3 months of idleness and loss in the 



TIME. 



353 



year, or one year wasted out of every four ; it means 3r7. 
wasted out of every shilling ; 6s. wasted out of every pound ; 
£1 wasted out of every £4 ; and in nine cases out of ten 
the quarter lost in the morning means money and time worse 
than wasted the night before. 

Five weeks' holiday. Let any young man go to his 
employer, and stipulate that he must have five weeks' holiday 
in the year to improve his mind," how he would be laughed 
at and shown to the door ! Yet this he may have without 
asking, or being indebted to any one for the gift. Let him 
get up one hour earlier a day, and he will have it in a better 
way than if he had the five weeks altogether ; for one hour 
every day devoted to any special object, will accomplish far 
more than five weeks successive poring over some particular 
study or inquiry. The brain will be clearer, the mind more 
active, the body less wearied, the memory more retentive. 

Floral clock. The Eev. James Neil, in his * Rays from 
the Eealms of Nature ' (p. 57-64), gives the names of different 
flowers that open at each hour of the day ; beginning with 
the Yellow Goat's-beard, which somewhat resembles the 
dandelion, and is called by country-folk Joseph' s-flower, and 
Stars of Jerusalem, which awakes at three o'clock in the 
early morning, on to the elegant Evening Primrose, which 
encloses its delicately-scented yellow petals at the evening 
hour of seven. It is not so well known that there are a 
large number of plants, though lacking in brightness of 
colour in almost every instance, possessed of a rich perfume, 
which bloom between 7 p.m. and the subsequent hours of 
night. These night-blooming flowers, by their times of 
waking and rest, indicate the remaining hours between sunset 
and sunrise. Indeed, there is reason to believe that every 
minute of the day may be marked by some one or other of 
the 120,000 species of the vegetable kingdom, though by far 
the largest proportion of flowers open about 6 a.m. and close 
about 6 p.m. 

The great botanist Linnseus appears to have been the first 

A A 



TRACTS^ RELIGIOUS. 



to mate use of flowers in this way to form a clock. IIo 
prepared a blooiniiig-dial, on the living face of which eacli 
bright hour Wiis marked by the opening or closing of a 
dill e rent }>lant. 

Spake moments. An hour in every day withdrawn from 
frivolous pursuits, would, if profitably employed, enable any 
man of ordinary capacity very shortly to master a complete 
science. It would make an ignorant man a well-informed 
man in ten yeai-s. We should not allow the time to pass with- 
out yielding fruit in the form of something learnt worthy of 
being known, some good ])rinciple cultivated, some good 
habit strengthened. Dr. Mason Good translated * Lucretius * 
while driving in liis carriage in the streets of London, going 
his rounds among his patients. Dr. Davison composed nearly 
all his works in the same way. Judge Hale wrote his ' Con- 
templations ' while travelling on circuit. Dr. Burney learnt 
French and Italian wliile travelling on horseback from one 
musical pupil to another in the course of his profession. 
Kirke White learnt Greek while walking to and from a 
lawyer's otfice. Elihu Burritt, Hugh Miller, and many 
others laid the foundation of their great knowledge in the 
same way, by saving up their odd minutes. Madame de 
Genlis composed several of her charming volumes while 
waiting for the Princess to whom she gave daily lessons. 
Jeremy Bentham made it one rule of his life, that it is a 
calamity to lose the smallest portion of time. 

All Souls', Oxford. The inscription on the dial of the 
clock at All Souls', Oxford, is — " Periunt et imputantur '' — 
(The hours perish, and are laid to our charge). 

TEACTS, EELIGIOUS 

— Have been well likened to a moral telephone, speaking 
to the most distant part of the earth, annihilating all distance, 
turning continents into contiguities, and making a neighbour- 
hood of the world." 

What a history might be written of " the romance of 



TRACTS^ RELIGIOUS. 



missions " in tlie distribution of tracts 1 Before the invention 
of printing they had begun their work. Peter Waldo j 
for example, going about with his cargo of tracts amongst 
the Piedmontese valleys, helped to form those wonderful 
Waldensian churches, which through thirty-five persecutions 
held fast the pure truth of God, though gashed by the spear of 
Savoy, and scorched by the faggot of Eome. John Wycliffe 
was a great writer of tracts. It is most interesting to find 
that the great Eeformation in Eohemia arose from his tracts. 
A young student, of a noble and opulent family in Bohemia, 
came to Oxford about the year 1389 ; and on returning home 
took with him several of Wyclifi'e's tracts. These fell into 
the hands of a young man with whom he was acquainted — 
John Huss. He read them, and the light of truth shone 
forth before his mind, and he became the Apostle and Martyr 
of Bohemia. The eai'ly Reformers were tract writers. Farel, 
the first French Eeformer, formed a Tract Society at Basle, 
that he might gain a hold upon the consciences of men. Dr. 
Bandinell of Oxford has made an interesting collection of 
Tracts^ written chiefly in France and Germany, before the 
Eeformation had been long established. In our own country 
it was a complaint of the Church of Eome : " The Gospellers 
of these days do fill the realms with so many of their noisome 
little books, that they be like the swarms of locusts which 
did upset the land of Egypt." Wesley d^ndi Whitfield, Charles 
Simeon, Hannah More, and many others, followed in the same 
line. The circulation of Mrs. Hannah More's tracts reached 
two millions in two years. 

Several Societies have been established at difi'erent times, 
for the difiusion of such useful Christian literature : The 
Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge" in 1698; 
'Hhe Society for Promoting Eeligious Knowledge amongst 
the Poor" in 1750, which was designed to unite all sections 
of the Christian Church ; then came the Tract Society of 
Edinburgh and Glasgow " in 1756, and the great " Eeligious 
Tract Society " in London in 1799. 

A A 2 



356 



TRACTS, RELIGIOUS. 



Influence of — for good, ah ! who can tell ? To record 
all the good that has heen effected by the distribution of little 
tracts would take a book of very many volumes. We have 
already referred to a few instances. To take a few more : 
The great Admiral Coligny was wounded dangerously at the 
siege of St. Quentin, and during the tedium of a long con- 
valescence, his brother brought him some tracts, by reading 
which he first became acquainted with the truth of that 
gospel of which afterwards he became the great Huguenot 
chami)ion. It is recorded that some of these same tracts were 
carried away, and got, in God's good providence, into a 
convent, where the Lady Abbess read one of them, and was 
led so to change her views, that she had in consequence 
to fly from France, and take refuge in Heidelberg, at the 
Court of Frederick III. of the Palatinate. After a while, 
this same lady married, and her husband was Prince William 
of Orange. "Who knows how much of the sturdy strong 
Protestantism of this William of Orange of the Revolution, 
came from the blood of his ancestress, who was thus led to 
God through a simple tract ? 

The first convert to Christianity in Ava, a city of Burmah, 
was made by means of a halfpenny tract : for a whole year 
did the good man, whose heart it touched, travel about the 
country with a bundle of tracts upon his back, to scatter the 
seeds of truth among his heathen countiymen. 

Individual instances might be multiplied indefinitely. The 
Rev. H. W. Webb Peploe, in pleading the cause of the 
Religious Tract Society in his church in Onslow Square, told 
with deep feeling how, when a young man, on his way to a race- 
course, where he was hoping to banish serious thought, a tract 
given him arrested his attention, and led him there and then to 
decide for Christ. The head of one of the largest educational 
establishments for the poor in London, was first awakened 
by a tract given him in youth, and then rejected, but after- 
wards read and applied by God's Spirit to the heart. A 
Chinese farmer, living far beyond the reach of any mission- 



TRACTS^ RELIGIOUS. 



357 



ary's voice, received a tract from the colporteur. A Eoman 
Catholic priest, leaving his church after saying mass, was 
presented with a Protestant tract by a schoolmaster. The 
priest took it in anger, but nevertheless was led to read it. 
He found healing from its truth, and became in the end 
a Protestant pastor, deservedly respected, in one of oar 
churches in the north; and the man who had offered the 
tract became the schoolmaster in his parish. 

The power of a tract. A shoemaker, having received 
a tract, instead of reading it, used it in filling up the space 
between the inner and outer sole of the shoe. The labour of 
the tract-distributor was apparently lost. ^N'ot so ; some time 
afterwards another man of the same business sat down on a 
Sunday morning to put a new sole to that shoe. When he 
had cut away the old leather, he saw the tract, and his atten- 
tion was instantly arrested by the title — * Eemember the 
Sabbath day, to keep it holy.' It was an arrow from the 
quiver of the Almighty. The work was immediately laid 
aside, and the man hastened to the house of God ; his soul 
was troubled, nor could he find rest till he found it at the 
cross of Christ." 

Do YOU want a Friend A Christian gentleman was 
walking on a beautiful summer day in one of the parks of 
London, and sat down on a seat to enjoy the bright sunshine. 
In a short time, another gentleman came and sat on the same 
seat, e\ddently in deep distress of mind. His face wore the 
appearance of care and sorrow, almost of despair ; he sighed 
heavily, and soon the words came, as if by instinct, from his 
lips, I haven't a friend in the world." The Christian 
gentleman had long been in the habit of seeking to do good 
by the distribution of tracts ; and he had one with him, as if 
meant in God's providence for the occasion, of which the 
title was, "Do you want a Friend T' He spoke gently to 
him, in tones of sympathy, and offered him the tract. It 
was accepted and led to a conversation, when the troubled 
man opened out his sorrow, and took down the friend's 



358 



TRACTS^ RELIGIOUS. 



address. " Do you want a Friend ? " " Indeed I do.' ' By 
God's mercy he was led to find the true remedy for the 
sorrows of life, and to rejoice in Christ Jesus, the ''Friend 
that sticketh closer than a hrother.'' 

Almost too late. The Secretary of a well-organized 
Tract Society in the south-east of London writes : — " One of 
our members called upon a friend, or workmate, who had 
then been lying ill for about a fortnight, to endeavour to point 
him to Jesus. For some days he visited him, reading and 
praying with him, though all seemed of no avail; his con- 
stant cry was, ' It's too late.' But, on going into the sick- 
room, after he had visited him for some time, he saw that 
a great change had come over his friend. A smile lit up 
his countenance, and, instead of the usual desponding and 
despairing cry, he seemed perfectly happy, notwithstanding 
his bodily pain; and his last words to his parents were, 
' Don't cry; I leave it all with Jesus.' 

" On inquiry, our visitor was informed that a tract which 
the sick man had read had been the means, in God's hands, 
of effecting the change, and of bringing peace to his soul. 
The tract was sent up to his room by a person lodging in the 
house, who obtained it from a shop in the neighbourhood. 
It was used as a wrapper for some provisions purchased there. 
Our pastor felt interested in a tract which had produced such 
good results, and after the death of the man, borrowed it 
from the parents of the deceased. Great was his surprise 
when he discovered that it was one distributed by the Society 
of which he was a member, with its stamp affixed thereon. 

" The Tract was ]^o. 411 of the Eeligious Tract Society's 
' Every Week' Series, and is entitled ' Almost Too Late.' " 

Don't be disheartened by appearances. An English 
gentleman was travelling in Switzerland, and was in the 
habit of giving away tracts. One day he was giving several 
away in a boat on the Lake of Geneva, which were well 
received. But there was one gentleman on board to whom 
he could not offer one. He was of a stern and most for- 



TRIALS. 



359 



bidding look, with a dark countenance and haughty bearing, 
and the poor man felt certain a tract offered to him would 
be instantly refused. But better thoughts prevailed. He 
walked up to the foreigner, and politely offered him a tract. 
To his great surprise the stranger's face instantly changed to 
a bright and sunny smile, and taking out his pencil he wrote 
on the title-page, Eph. ii. 19 ("i!^ow, therefore, we are no 
more strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the 
saints, and of the household of God"), and added, Sir, I 
wrote that tract. 

A child's message, a minister in the country gives an 
account of what occurred to him. He says : " I had gone 
to visit a little cottage in the neighbourhood, and I said to 
its mistress that I had a pretty little tract, ^ Christ our only 
Eefuge,' which I offered to lend her if she wished to read it. 
' I do not know how to read,' she replied, * but I have a little 
boy, nine years old, who can ; but he is, alas ! ill in bed.' 
* Well, let him have the little book to read, and I will call 
and see him.' Shortly afterwards I was sent for, and found 
the mother in tears. I asked the reason. She replied, ' My 
child is dead, and has left this halfpenny for you.' ' Had he 
read the little book 1 ' * Oh, yes ; he read it, read it over and 
over again, till he knew it by heart ; he could talk of nothing 
else before he died, and just before the end, he begged me 
not to return the book to you, but gave me this halfpenny to 
buy it, and he entreated me to learn to read, that I might 
read it too. 

" ' Mother ! mother ! ' he said, just before he died, ' Christ 
is my only refuge. Never part with that book ; it will do 
good to father also.' " 

TEIALS. 

A smooth sea never made a skilful mariner. 
God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb." It is a 
familiar fact, that the trees in the great pine forest have 
thicker bark in the direction of the prevailing storm, as Arctic 
animals have a warmer fur. 



360 



TEIALS. 



A heart without sorrows would be a heart without the 
sweetest revelations man can receive from above. 

Suffering is dearer to God's saints than happiness, because 
it has more of Christ's likeness in it. 

"I think it absolutely certain," says Payson, "that the 
same love which made Christ become the bearer of the sins 
of His people, would have also made Him bear their cross for 
them, if He had not seen it better for them to bear the dis- 
cipline of trial." 

"I remember," said one, "once reading of a spring of 
fresh water that was found far out at sea. The spring was 
so full and strong, as it came out of the ground at the bottom 
of the sea, that it sent up a stream of fresh water through 
the briny ocean, pouring out its strong current even to the 
surface. What a beautiful emblem of the power of faith to 
minister blessing to the true believer, even amidst * the waves 
of this troublesome world ' ! '' 

If we make trials and crosses for ourselves, it is like a 
hammer striking a cracked bell, which makes strange discord. 
But if we take trials as God sends them, it is like the same 
hammer striking a sound bell and drawing forth sweet 
melody. 

" How shall we pass through this trial, dear 1 " asked an 
anxious wife of her Christian husband, at a time of great 
perplexity. " Ask me six months hence," he replied, " how 
we have passed through it, and I will tell you." 

When George Whitfield was one day preaching from 
the text, Wherefore glorify ye God in the fires," he said, 
" Some years ago I was at Shields, and I went to a glass- 
house and saw a workman take a piece of glass and put it 
into three furnaces in succession. I asked him, *Why do 
you put it into so many fires 1 * He answered, * Oh, sir, the 
first was not hot enough, nor the second, and therefore we 
put it into the third. Heat will make it transparent.' ' Ob/ 
thought I, ' does this man put the glass into one furnace after 
another that it may be made perfect? Then, my God, 



TEIALS. 



3G1 



put me into one furnace after another that my soul may 
become transparent too/" 

" As SNOW is in itself cold, yet it warms and refreshes the 
earth, so afflictions, though in themselves grievous, yet keep 
the soul of the Christian warm and make it fruitful'' 
{Salter). 

Where from % " We fancy all our afflictions are sent us 
directly from above; sometimes we think it in piety and 
contrition, but oftener in moroseness and discontent. It 
would be well, however, if we attempted to trace the causes of 
them ; we should perhaps find their origin in some region of 
the heart which we had never well explored, or in which we 
had secretly deposited our worst indulgences. The clouds 
that intercept the heavens from us, come not from the 
heavens but from the earth " (Landor). 

" There are minerals called hydrophanes, which are not 
transparent till they are immersed in water, when they be- 
come so, as the hydrophanes, a variety of opal. So it is with 
many a Christian, till the floods of adversity have been poured 
over him, his character appears marred and clouded by self- 
ishness and worldly influences. Eut trials clear away the 
obscurity, and give distinctness and beauty to his piety" 
{Professor Hitchcock), 

" I feel," said one, that repeated afflictions come not as 
lightning to the scathed tree, blasting it yet more and more ; 
but as the strokes of the sculptor on the marble block, form- 
ing it into the image of beauty and loveliness. Let but the 
Divine presence be felt, and no lot is hard. Let me lie in 
His hands, and no event is unwelcome." 

EosES. " It is said that gardeners sometimes, when they 
would bring a rose to richer flowering, deprive it for a season 
of light and moisture. Silent and dark it stands, dropping 
one faded leaf after another, and seeming to go down patiently 
to death. Ikit when every leaf is dropped, and the plant 
stands stripped to the uttermost, a new life is even then 
working in the buds, from which shall spring a tender foliage, 



362 



.TEIALS. 



and a brigliter wealth of flowers. So, often in celestial gar- 
dening, every leaf of earthly joy must drop before a new and 
divine bloom visits the soul" {Mrs. H, B. Stoive). 

Mrs. Gilbert (formerly Ann Taylor) wrote to her sister, 
" Oh, w;oe to them who suffer under barren sorroio, who get 
no nearer heaven by the rendings and woundings that detach 
them from the earth." 

Lawns that we would keep in the best condition are often 
mown ] the grass has scarcely any respite from the scythe. 
Out in the meadows there is no such repeated cutting ; mow- 
ing once or twice in the year will answer there. Both have 
their uses. Eut on the finer grass we spend more care. So 
it is with the design of our chastisements and sorrows. 

" Tribulations are treasures ; and if we were wise we 
should reckon our afflictions among our rarest jewels. The 
caverns of sorrow are mines of diamonds. Our earthly pos- 
sessions may be silver, but temporal trials are, to the saints, 
invariably gold. We may grow in grace through what we 
enjoy, but we probably make the greatest progress through 
what we sufi'er. Soft gales may be pleasant for haven-bound 
vessels, but rough winds are better. The calm is our way, 
but God hath His way in the whirlwind. Saints gain more 
by their losses than by their profits. Health cometh out of 
their sickness, and wealth floweth out of their poverties'' 
{Sjpurgeon), 

" It is ordained of God that the cross of trouble should be 
engraved on every vessel of mercy as a royal mark whereby 
the King's vessels of honour are distinguished" (Ibid.), 

As in NEEDLEWORK, the dark groundwork is laid before 
the beautifal colours are wrought in; as the statuary cuts 
and carves his statue before he gilds it ; so doth the Spirit 
of Christ begin with sadness, and end in joy ; He first 
cuts and wounds, then heals ; first cleanses the sore, then 
pours in oil and wine ; and all is done in love. 

1^0 cross, no crown; no pain, no palm; no grief, no 
gladness ; no thorn, no throne " (Will km Penn). 



TRUST. 



3G3 



iN'ext to realizing Christ's love, there is no relief in 
sorrow like a practical interest in the spiritual good of 
others. 

" Let us not try to manage our little troubles by our- 
selves, lest greater troubles spring out of them. Little troubles 
are like little seeds ; they are small enough in themselves, 
but they are capable of producing great and important results. 
The oak is the produce of the acorn ; the tangled briar comes 
from a seed on which no thorn is to be seen. The Christian 
who will manage his little troubles by himself, will soon find 
that he must manage much greater ones than he bargained 
for at first" {Power), 

A FEW, and comparatively but few, learn the art of receiv- 
ing sorrow and trouble as wholesome medicine ; yea, as an 
invisible garment that clothes them with strength; as a 
mysterious joy, so that they suffer gladly, rejoicing in 
infirmity, and holding up their heads with blessed hope 
when all things seem against them ; letting the light 
shine through their eyes, that its lustre may attract others, 
and encourage them to sufi'er and to bear. 

TEUST. 

Captain Vilsburg, Governor of Westbury prison, Con- 
necticut, was remarkable for his treatment and reclamation 
of prisoners by humane and kind treatment. He possessed a 
moral courage which approached almost to the sublime. One 
of his methods was, to make the prisoners feel that he would 
trust them. At one time, a desperate criminal had sworn 
to murder him. Immediately Captain Yilsburg sent for the 
man to shave him, allowing no one to be present. He eyed 
the man, pointed to the razor, and desired him to shave him. 
The prisoner's hand trembled, but he went through it very 
well. When he had done, the Captain said, " I have been 
told you meant to murder me, but I thought I might trust 
you." " God bless you, sir," said the conscience-stricken man. 

" It is a preposterous thing," says William Penn, " that 



364 



TRUST. 



men can venture their souls where they would not venture 
their money/' They will take their religion in trusting all 
sorts of false teachers, without examination, but they will 
not trust their money without first making full inquiries. 

•A clergyman, on visiting the great pyramid in Egypt in 
1880, learned an illustration of complete trust. The ascent 
of the "Great Gallery" was difficult, but the descent was 
much more so along a narrow and slippery shelf, the only 
light being a bit of candle held by one of the Arab guides. 
At length they came to a sharp corner, the path beyond 
being several feet lower, narrower, and still slippery, and over 
a deep chasm ; and to make it worse, the candle had gone out. 

Here Mr. W was required to trust himself to an Arab, 

to be carried on his shoulders round the corner over the 
chasm, and set down on the other side. This he hesitated to 
do, and tried to find some other way. 

Let me rest one hand on the rock and the other on you/' 
he said. 

" 1^0, you must rest both on me," was the answer. 

" I will try myself, and you shall help me.'' 

" No ; you lean all weight on Arab," he continued. 

" But wait till I see what you are standing on." 
No ; you are quite safe resting on Arab." 

" But I am heavier than you think." 
You quite safe if you trust all to Arab." 

Mr. W saw there was no alternative, and did as he 

was told, and v/as carried safely to the other side, not without 
thinking of a deeper chasm, and of One on whom the whole 
weight of a sinner's trust must be laid. 

William Eeed kept a barber's shop in the city of Bath, 
and, like many others, he carried on business on the Lord's 
Day. On one occasion he happened to go into a place of 
worship, just as the preacher gave out the text, " Eemember 
the Sabbath Day to keep it holy." The truths he heard 
penetrated the inmost recesses of his soul, his conscience was 
aroused, and before he left that house of prayer he felt him- 



TEUST. 



365 



self to be a guilty man. The conviction clung to him, his 
Sunday labour gave him a heavy heart, and he could find no 
peace. At last he resolved to open his mind to the minister, 
who advised him to give up his Sunday business, and trust 
in God. He replied that if he gave up his Sunday shaving 
he should be reduced to beggary, and that though he now 
had a good business, it would soon be lost. The minister 
said he could give him no other advice. After a time, in 
much fear and trembling, Eeed resolved to cast his burden 
on the Lord, and close his shop on Sundays. He did so, 
and went regularly to the house of God ; there he heard the 
glad tidings of salvation ; there he learned to love and trust 
in Christ as his Saviour ; and soon he enjoyed that satisfac- 
tion and peace of mind which passeth understanding, and 
which is invariably the reward of obedience to God's com- 
mands. But his business began to fail. Men of the world 
did not sympathize with his altered views, and his genteel 
customers went elsewhere. He was persecuted and called 
Methodist and Puritan. He was no longer able to meet the 
expenses of his fashionable shop ; so he gave it up, and in 
course of time became so poor as to be able only to occupy a 
cellar under the old Market House, and his customers were 
confined to people of the poorer classes. 

One Saturday evening, just as it was getting dark, a gentle- 
man who had been travelling by coach inquired of an ostler 
for a barber ; he was directed to the cellar opposite. As he 
could only wait while the horses were changed, he requested 
to be shaved quickly ; " besides, he did not like to desecrate 
the Sabbath." This was touching the barber on a tender 
chord : he burst into tears, and asked the stranger to lend 
him a halfpenny to buy a candle, as it was not light enough 
to shave him in safety. The gentleman did so, revolving in 
his mind the extreme poverty to which the poor man was 
reduced. When shaved, he said, " There must be something 
extraordinary in your history, which I have no time to hear 
now. Here is half-a-crown for you. When I return I will 



3G6 



TRUST. 



call and investigate your case. What is your name?? 
" William Eeed/' said the astonished barber. William 
Eeed ! " echoed the stranger, " William Eeed 1 " " By your 
dialect you are from the West?" Yes, sir, from Kingston, 
near Taunton." " William Eeed, from Kingston, near Taun- 
ton ! What was your father's name 1 " Thomas." Had 
he any brothers 1 " " Yes, sir ; one, after whom I was named 
but he went to the Indies ; and as we never heard from him 
we suppose him to be dead." " Come along, follow me,'* 
said the gentleman : " I am going to see a person who says 
his name is William Eeed, of Kingston, near Taunton. Come 
and confront him. If you prove to be indeed the man whom 
you say you are, I have good news for you ! Your uncle is 
dead, and has left an immense fortune, which I will put you 
in possession of when all legal doubts are removed." They 
went by the coach, saw the pretended William Eeed, and 
proved him to be an impostor. The stranger, who was a 
pious attorney, was soon quite satisfied of the barber's identity, 
and told him that he had advertised for him in vain. Pro- 
vidence had now thrown him in his w^ay in a most remarkable 
manner, and he had much pleasure in transferring a great 
many thousand pounds to a worthy man^ the rightful heir of 
the property. Thus was man's extremity God's oppor- 
tunity." William Eeed's faith was severely tested ; but 
God blessed him for his faithfulness. And in His Word 
God has declared He will never leave nor forsake those who 
put their trust in Him " (Leaflet published by the Working 
Men's Lord's Day Rest Association). 

Try and Trust. "There are two little words," said the 
Eev. John Williams^ the famous missionary, " in our language 
which I always admired — Try and Trust. You know not 
what you can or cannot effect until you try ; and if you make 
your trials in the exercise of trust in God^ mountains of 
imaginary difficulties will vanish as you approach them^ and 
facilities will be afforded which you never anticipated." 

Luther. In the darkest hour of Luther's trying life, the 



TRUTH. 



3G7 



Elector of Saxony was the only earthly defender that stood 
by him. For a time, it was doubtful whether the Emperor 
■Charles Y. would not send an army against the Elector to 
crush - him. Some said to Luther, " If the Emperor should 
send his forces against the Elector, where will you be 1 " The 
Reformer nobly answered, I shall be either in heaven or 
under heaven." 

The Princess Amelia (daughter of George III.). " You 
have been a good child to your parents" (said the venerable 
monarch) ; " we have nothing for which to reproach you ; but 
I need not tell you that it is not of yourself alone that you 
can be saved, and that your acceptance with God must 
depend upon your faith and trust in the merits of the 
Eedeemer." " I know it,^' replied the dying princess with 
gentle resignation, " and I could not wish for a better trust.'* 

A Physician who was anxious about his soul, asked a 
Christian patient of his how he should find the way of salva- 
tion. " Doctor," was the reply, " I have felt that I could do 
notliing, and I have put my cause in your hand ; I am tnisf- 
ing in you. This is exactly what every poor sinner must do 
towards the Lord Jesus." The physician saw the simplicity 
of the Gospel, and was enabled to trust himself upon the 
Saviour. 

JN'ever afraid, a gentleman crossing a dreary moor came 
upon a cottage where lived a godly person. When about to 
leave, he said, "Are you not afraid to live in this lonely 
placed " jSTever, sir," said the old man, "for faith closes the 
door at night, and mercy opens it in the morning." 

TRUTH. 

"It is a common error with Christian people, and one of 
the most serious consequences, that they make their religion 
all to consist in one point — some favourite doctrine ; or in 
some few special points, to the neglect of all the rest. But 
Christian truth is not a point : it is not even a straight line • 
but a circle. It comprehends a number of doctrines, and 



368 



TRUTH. 



also of duties : and he who does not strive to be faithful in 
the whole, is faithf al in none : as he who breaks the law in 
one point is guilty of all " {Rev, Stephen Jenner), 

It is an old proverb, Truth may be blamed, but cannot 
be shamed." 

More persons desire to have truth on their side, than desire 
to be on the side of truth. 

No persons are so habitually truthful as those who are 
•uniformly calm and quiet. Many persons distort facts in 
common conversation even, not from the desire to exaggerate, 
or to be untrue, but from mere excitability of mind, and the 
habit of speaking strongly, which makes commonplace facts 
look dull. 

Our perceptions of spiritual truth are very much like our 
hearing village church bells. Sometimes the sound seems dis- 
tinct ; then it dies away ; and then again, at a sudden turn 
of the wind, how clear and full the peal comes wafted to 
our ears ! 

Two bricklayers were building a wall — the front wall of a 
high house. One of them, in placing a brick, discovered that 
it was a little thicker on one side than on the other. His 
companion advised him to throw it aside. " It will make 
your work untrue.'* " Pooh ! " said the other, " what differ- 
ence will it makel you are so particular." "My mother," 
said the first man, "taught me, that truth is truth, and ever 
so little an untruth is a lie, and a lie is no trifle ; and a lie in 
one's work, like a lie in one's character, will sooner or later 
show itself, and bring harm, if not ruin.'* " Well, I'll risk 
it in this case," answered Ben, and on he went, laying on 
more bricks and carrying the wall up higher. The next 
morning they went to resume their work, when behold the 
lie had wrought out its result. The wall, getting a little 
aslant from the untrue brick, had got more and more untrue 
as it got higher, and at last, in the night had toppled over, 
obliging them to do all their work over again. 

John Eobinson's farewell words to the little band who 



TRUTH. 



369 



left Delft in the 'Mayflower' were, "The Lord lias more 
truth yet to break forth out of his Word." 

Like the seed which the Egyptians buried with their 
mummies, though held in the grasp of, or laid in the bosom 
of, death for years, still truth retains its latent vitality ; and 
on being exhumed, and sown in congenial soils, and exposed 
to the action of the heavens, will fructify as sound and as 
luxuriant, as if but yesterday it had dropped from the plant. 
The doctrine of justification by faith, when brought by 
Luther out of the catacomb of Kome, was as vigorous and 
fruitful as when first preached by the great Apostle of the 
Gentiles. 

Gems. ''It is not with truth as with flowers, which we 
use to smell at for an hour or two, and then throw them away. 
Eut for necessary truths, — they will not die in your hands. 
They are not like flowers. They are like gems. Precious 
stones, that keep a lustre from year to year, they are always 
shining and bright ; you may wear them while you live, and 
not be weary of them" {Arrowsmita), 

'' Truth will be uppermost some time or other, like cork, 
though kept down in the water" {Sir W, Temple). 

*• The greatest friend of truth is time, the greatest 
enemy is prejudice, and the constant companion is humility " 
(Colton), 

" The truth is imprinted on the firmament above you. 
In childhood, both seem near and measurable; but with 
years they grow and grow and seem farther off ; and farther, 
and grander, and deeper, and vaster, as God Himself ; till 
you smile to remember how you thought you could touch 
the sky, and blush to recall the proud and self-confident way 
in which you used to talk of knowing and preaching ' the 
truth ' " {i\ W, Robertson), 

" Truth is the same in all ages ; not like an almanack, 
to be changed every year, or calculated peculiarly for one 
meridian'' (Monitor), 



BB 



370 



UNBELIEF. 



U:^BELIEF 

— CLOSES THE HEART. An empty vessel capable of hold- 
mg water, if tiglitly corked, none can enter it, though water 
is poured upon it in great abundance ; nay, it may be thrown 
in the sea, and still remain empty. So it is with our hearts ; 
unbeHef closes them so that the water of life cannot fill them, 
however abundantly it may be poured upon and around us" 
(Handbook of Illustrations). 

" David Hume, after witnessing in the family of the 
venerable La Roche those consolations which the gospel only 
can impart, confessed with a sigh that * there were moments 
when, amidst all the pleasures of philosophical discoveries 
and the pride of literary fame, he wished that he had never 
doubted'" {lUd.). 

" All unbelief is the belief of a lie " (Dr. H. Bonar). 

Caste is supposed to have been originally a Portuguese 
word, meaning separation. Caste was a semi-political, semi- 
religious institution, designed to strengthen the power of the 
conquering, and to weaken the conquered races. l!Tothing 
can sliow the power of Christianity more strikingly than its 
triumph over caste. When Buddha came, B.C. 500, he tried 
to abolish it, but it was too strong for him, and he had to 
fly to China and Ceylon. Yet now, how it is falling more 
and more rapidly every year before the progress of the 
Christian faith. So will everything do of which the essence 
is separation. 

— IS strength, a number of tiny brooklets would be of 
little use to turn a mill, and most probably dry up when the 
sun is hot; but let all the water be turned into one channel, 
and there is a concentration of force, which will move the 
wheel, and grind the corn to supply the town with bread. 

A fable. "You do no work," said the scissors to the 
rivet; "we don't want you." "Where would your work 
be," said the rivet^ " if I did not keep you together % '' 



UNSELFISHNESS. 



371 



U:N"SELriSH]S'ESS. 

"Thomas Jameson was a working miner, and worked hard 
for his bread. The captain of the mine said to him one day, 
^ Thomas, I've got an easier berth for you, where there is 
but little to do, and where you can earn more wages : will 
you accept it 1 * What do you think he said ] ' Captain, 
there's our poor brother Tregony ; he has a sick body, and 
he is not able to work as hard as I am. I fear his toil will 
shorten his useful life. Will you let him have the berth ? ' 
The captain, pleased with his generosity, sent for Tregony, 
and gave him the berth, which he is now enjoying. Thomas 
was gratified, and added, ' I can work a little longer yet ' " 
{Sunday Magazine). 

USEFULNESS. 

The Eev. James JN'eil, in his work, ' Eays from the Eealms 
of ^^ature,' beautifully speaks of the prodigality of nature in 
the production of seeds. " Though we find of fifty seeds she 
often brings but one to bear, yet so great is the struggle for 
existence which is always going on, and so great the difficulty 
of securing all the conditions necessary for germination, that 
the fifty seeds must often be sown in order that the one may 
be brought to bear. Did nature do as many Christian 
workers do — did she sow only the one seed which was likely 
to germinate ; did she withhold her bountiful hand from 
scattering the forty-nine seeds which perish because she could 
not see the use of it ; did she only work where she was sure 
of direct results, the whole vegetable world would perish.'* 

It was the request of a young man going out to India, 
"Pray for me that I may do my Master's work in my 
Master's spirit." 

A CAPACITY for usefulness must not be mistaken for the 
exercise of usefulness. A good tree is not one capable of 
bearing fruit, but one that does really bear it. 

" There was a minister of the gospel once, a true preacher, 
a faithful loving man, whose ministry was supposed to be 

B6 2 



372 



USEFULNESS. 



exceedingly unsuccessful. After twenty years' labour, he 
was known to have brought only one soul to Christ. So 
said his congregation. Poor worker in the trench ! his toil 
was not seen by men, but the eye of God rested upon it. 
To him one day came a deputation from his people, repre- 
senting to him, respectfully enough, that, inasmuch as God 
had not seen fit to bless his labours among them, it were 
better for him to remove to another sphere. They said that 
he had only been instrumental in the conversion of one 
sinner. He might do more elsewhere. ' What do you say ? ^ 
said he. * Have I really brought one sinner to Christ 1 ' 
* Yes,' was the reply ; * one ; but only one/ * Thank God,' 
cried he, * for that. Thank God I have brought one soul to 
Christ. iN'ow for twenty more years' labour among you, God 
sparing me. Perhaps I may be the honoured instrument of 
bringing two' " (Calthrop). 

" ' More useless than seaweed ' (vilia dlgd) was a well- 
known Latin proverb; but seaweed is now known to yield 
iodine, a blessing to many a sufferer. Let none say * My 
life is barren, and^ alas 1 profitless to all around me.' 
Above all, let us never despair of good in others" {Clergy- 
man's Magazine). 

— IS within the reach of all. The man who intensely 
desires to be useful, and takes the proper means, will be 
useful. ^0 one need be idle. Eemember it is by units the 
Lord has wrought the mightiest results. It is told of J ohn 
Eliot, the great apostle of the Indians, that on his death-bed 
he was found one day with a young savage at his side, to 
whom he was teaching his letters, and on being asked why 
he did not take rest, replied, * I have often prayed to God to 
make me useful, and now I can no longer preach the gospel, 
He leaves me strength enough to teach this child his 
alphabet" {Philips), 

A minister's preaching may go beyond his own experi- 
ence, but his personal influence seldom will. 

It is a noble and animating thought that the work and 



USEFULNESS. 



873 



service which we do here, are fitting us for a glorious service 
through eternity. 

You may go on," says one, " working without the Lord, 
and seem to be very busy, and doing a great deal of important 
Christian work; but except you work under and with the 
Lord, you can have no spiritual power or actual blessing. As 
with the husbandman ; he may plough and sow and weed, 
and perform every operation with the greatest diligence and 
regularity, but unless God make the sun to shine and the 
rain to fall, it is but * lost labour ' that he rises early and 
takes so much labour ; only ' God can give the increase.' " 

]^o true Christian work can be wrought but by the Divine 
power. Let this be remembered by our Sunday School 
teachers and other Christian labourers. 

If I CAN ONLY DO GOOD to ouc ! Our language makes a 
distinction which cannot be made in French or German, 
between prodigality and squandering. JTature is prodigal iu 
her manifold labours, but never squanders them wildly without 
a purpose. Though we sometimes find from fifty seeds sown 
only one is found to germinate, so great is the struggle for 
existence, and so great the difficulties of germination, yet 
the fifty must be sown for the sake of one. Did nature do 
as many Christian workers do — did she sow only the one 
seed which was likely to bring forth fruit, how many a field 
would be found wholly barren, which now blooms in beauty 
through the riches of her generous efforts. Let Christian 
workers take the lesson. Let them work in every way, cast- 
ing the good seed of truth to the right and to the left ; for 
who knoweth which may prosper, whether this or that*^ 

EiCHARD Knill. The great passion of his life was this ; 
he entered every place with the view of usefulness, and use- 
fulness with him meant the conversion of sinners ; and he 
had a wonderful reward. Upwards of one hundred persons, 
it is estimated, became ministers of the gospel through his 
influence, besides numbers who were led first to give them- 
selves to the Lord, and afterwards their life to His service. 



874 



VICE. 



Dr. Andrew Eeeb, tlie benevolent founder of so many 
useful institutions, — when lie was passing away from work, 
one of his sons tried to cheer him with the hope that he 
might still see one more institution which he had been trying 
to raise, finished. " ^N'o,'' he said ; " the moment I cannot 
do good in the world is the moment in which I should like 
to leave it, and I think that moment has now come." 

VICE. 

" The way of vice is as the entrance to a pit ; it is easy to 
go down, but difficult to return. As an old stain is not easily 
removed, so habitual vices are not easily overcome. The 
most dangerous vice is that which most resembles virtue, as 
the most devouring devil is an angel of light'* {Voices of 
Wisdom). 

" Vice creepeth upon men under the name of virtue ; for 
covetousness would be called frugality, and prodigality taketh 
to itself the name of bounty ; pride calleth itself neatness ; 
revenge seems like greatness of spirit ; and cruelty excuseth 
its bitterness under the name of courage '' (Ibid.). 

WALKING, HOLY. 

" It is a most important matter how we walk. Before we 
were saved, we were not commanded to walk, but to be 
reconciled to God. 'Now that we are saved, God enjoins us 
to walk, and He tells us hoio to walk. * As ye have therefore 
received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him.* Many 
of God's dear children read this passage as if it said *so 
talk ; ' and while they do a great deal of talking, they forget 
about the walking, which is the important thing. !N'ow when 
you and I professed to be born again, the world commenced 
to take its measure of us, not by our talk but by our walk. 
In a word, the world cares nothing for a Christian's talking, 
unless he has a walk (that is, a Hfe) behind it that can stand 
inspection." 

"There are two kinds of men in the Church," says an 



WAR. 



375 



old writer. " Some have feet, but want eyes ; otlier? have 
eyes, but want feet. The first have the feet of affections, 
but want the eye of knowledge to discern the right way to 
walk in. The last have eyes, but want feet; they have 
the knowledge of the truth, but they have no affection to 
walk in it." 

WAR. 

From the statements made in Eollin's 'Ancient History,^ 
Millot's * Elements,' Mavor's * Universal History,' &c., it is 
supposed that one-tenth of the human race have perished by 
war. 

Of all the drains upon the wealth of nations, none has 
ever equalled that of war and the preparations for war. Take 
the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as an example, in a 
few prominent instances. From the years 1702 — 1814 we 
waged four great wars with Europe and America, besides a 
number of smaller wars, and a gigantic one during almost the 
whole time in Asia. These four wars cost us altogether 
,£1,820,000,000; and taking in the smaller wars, the whole 
cost of war during a single century was about £2,000,000,000. 

It is supposed that the wars of Julius Csesar destroyed 
about 2,000,000 of men, and those of Alexander about the 
same ; the wars of iN'apoleon, some say, nearly 4,000,000. 

From the comparison of several reliable sources, it appears 
that in the twenty-five years between 1853-77, i.e, within a 
quarter of a century, nearly 2,000,000 persons were lost 
through war, and that before the outbreak of the great con- 
flict between Eussia and Turkey. The number of killed, and 
of those who died of disease and wounds, were : in the Cri- 
mean war (1854-55), 750,000 ; American civil war (1861-65), 
800,000; Franco-German war (1870-71), 225,000 ; Franco- 
Italian war (1859), 40,000; Austrian, Prussian, and Italian 
war (1866), 50,000 ; war with Mexico, Paraguay, Cochin 
China, Schleswig Holstein, &c., 70,000 ; massacre in Bul- 
garia and Armenia, 15,000 ; total, 1,950,000, 



876 



WAR. 



If we take the estimated loss in money also, tlie picture is 
a terrible one. It is said tlie cost of the Crimean war wa^ 
£340,000,000; the Franco-Italian war (1857), £60,000,000 ; 
of the Austrian and Prussian war (1866), £66,000,000 ; 
the American war cost the ITorth £960,000,000, and the 
South, £460,000,000; the Franco-Prussian war (1870-71), 
£500,000,000; the wars in Mexico, Paraguay, Schleswig 
Holstein, &c., £47,000,000; total, £2,413,000,000. 

But no figures of the numbers of men killed and wounded 
at the scene of battle, or of the money spent in war, can at 
all adequately represent the full horrors of this scourge of 
nations. We must remember the number who return home 
to sicken and die ; the number of bread-winners who are 
withdrawn from the comfort and support of so many happy 
families ; the care and anxiety caused to relations and friends 
from grief, anxiety, and often want ; besides the moral injury 
done by the vices associated with large armies collected 
together, and other collateral evils. 

On the above estimate a writer in the * Leisure Hour* 
says : " It is almost impossible for the mind to grasp, in any 
adequate degree, the importance and significance of these sums. 
But it may be mentioned that the above amount would allow 
nearly £2 for every man, woman, and child on the habitable 
globe. It would afibrd a present of £100 for every person in 
England and Wales ; it would erect, complete, and furnish with 
works of art two thousand such institutions as the beautiful 
Crystal Palace near London ; it would make two railways all 
round the world in the most splendid and substantial style 
at £50,000 a mile ; it would thickly dot colleges, schools, 
and hospitals all over Europe; it would provide for every 
adult male in Europe (about 50,000,000) a freehold farm of 
100 acres in America." 

At a meeting at Charing Cross to establish an Inter- 
national Arbitration and Peace Association, it was stated 
that the crushing burden of European armaments require 
now 10,000,000 men, the bread-winners and comforters 



WAR. 



377 



of their homes, involving the enormous expenditure of 
^580,000,000 annually. 

Arbitration. The United States has, since 1794, twenty- 
four times sought to settle national differences by arbitration ; 
introducing in all treaties to be made, a clause, if possible, 
that neither party should go to war without first submitting 
the case to a Court of Arbitration. 

Weapons of destruction. One feature in the present 
day is the great advance in the weapons of slaughter. Lord 
Shaftesbury well said in a speech at Edinburgh, that in the 
last English Exhibition, more power of mind and thought 
seem to have been bestowed upon the means of destroying 
life than of saving it. The Duke of Wellington used to say, 

There is only one thing more dreadful than a battle lost — 
a victory won.'' In the Peninsular war, it was reckoned 
that of all the shots which were fired, only one in 600 took 
effect. At Speichern, the Germans disabled one Frenchman 
by the expenditure of 279 cartridges ; at Worth, one shot in 
every 147 told. According to Eussian statistics, one Turk 
was struck down in the late war for every 66 shots fired 1 
The present weapon used by our soldiers is so skilfully con- 
structed that it may be depended on for shooting to a hair's 
breadth ; its range is sevenfold of the old musket, and its action 
is so swift that, if skilfully wielded, it may slaughter twenty 
human beings in a minute. We have artillery, too, brought 
to such perfection, that it will throw, with unerring precision, 
a mass of iron weighing 2000 lbs. to a distance of five miles. 
By the help of electricity, we can send against hostile ships 
an explosive force, whose discharge will shatter their timbers 
to the waves, and utterly destroy hundreds of brave men 
who form their crews. 

The Duke of Wellington, warrior as he was, and laden 
with the honours justly due to his great name, had always 
the greatest realization of the horrors of war. On one occa- 
sion (March 21, 1829), in the House of Lords, when giving 
his reasons for conceding Catholic Emancipation, he said: 



378 



WARFARE, SPIRITUAL, 



^*My Lords, I have passed more of my time in war than 
most men, and I may say in civil war ; and if I could avoid, 
by any sacrifice whatever, even for one month, a civil war in 
a country to which I am attached, I would sacrifice my life 
to do it." 

On another occasion, the story is told of him that Lord 
Shaftesbury? was sitting with him in the carriage, when they 
were driving through the beautiful lanes of Hertfordshire. 
The scenery was lovely, and there were houses, both of rich 
and poor, here and there as they rode on. Suddenly the 
Duke leaned back in the carriage and closed his eyes, as if 
in deep thought. After a while he turned to Lord Shaftes- 
bury and asked, " What do you suppose I have been thinking 
about V "I can only suppose,'* replied Lord Shaftesbury, 
" it must have been of something of importance." " Yes," 
said the Duke, I have been thinking what an awful thing 
war is. What should I feel, if I had to desolate all this fair 
country, and all these happy homes I Ah ! there is nothing 
more terrible than defeat in war — except victory." 

WAEFAEE, SPIRITUAL. 

" Who would not courageously descend into that combat, 
wherein there is a certain reward for him who conquers, 
and certain conquest for him who fights ? For He who is 
the Eewarder is also the Helper. He shows the crown, and 
He supplies the arms. We need not excuse ourselves by 
pretence of weakness ; the most equal Arbiter and Judge of 
the field doth so fitly match every combatant, that He calleth 
forth none to fight but whom He will make able. He will 
no more deny His heavenly aid to the man who prays aright, 
than a fond and affluent father will deny bread to his son 
who asketh it when He is hungry *' (Gh'otlus). 

A DYING WARRIOR requested that the flag under which he 
had fought and conquered might be placed beneath his head 
for a pillow, as life was ebbing away. So the believer, when 
paleness dims his eye, and coldness creeps over his limbs, 



WARFARE, SPIRITUAL. 



379 



counts it his highest comfort to know he has fought " the 
good fight of faith/' and can cry, unappalled by the terrors of 
death, Victory, victory, through the "blood of the Lamb/' 

Overcoming difficulties. " Look at that bare perpen- 
dicular mountain-side ; why, it is worse than perpendicular, 
it overhangs the lake ; yet the bold Tyrolese have carried a 
road right along the bald face of the rock, by blasting out a 
gallery; or, as it looks from below, by chiselling out a 
groove. One would have readily written down that feat as 
impossible, and yet the road is made, and we have travelled 
it from Eiva into the Tyrol, the Lago Garda lying far below 
our feet. Henceforth that road shall be a cheering memory 
when our task is more than usually difficult. If anything 
ought to he done, it shall he done. With God in front, we 
shall soon leave difficulties in the rear, transformed into 
memorials of ' victory.' " {Spur g eon). 

Different gifts. " The discussion about gifts amounts 
very much to a discussion whether the rifle, the carbine, the 
pistol, or the cannon is the best weapon. Each is best in its 
place. The great point is, that every one shall use the 
weapon best suited to them ; that he charge it well, and see 
that it is in a condition to strike fire " [Rev. W. Arthw), 

The post of honour. " A poor but worthy inhabitant of 
Paris went to the Bishop, with a heart almost overwhelmed. 
" Father," said he, "I am a sinner. I feel I am ; but it is 
against my will. I humbly pray for faith, but still my 
doubts remain. Surely if I were not despised of God, He 
would visit me in mercy." The Bishop thus consoled the 
sorrowing man : ^' The king has two castles, in different 
situations, and sends a commander to each. The castle of 
Montleberg stands remote from danger, far inland ; but that 
of La Eochelle is on the coast, where it is liable to continual 
sieges, ^ow which of the two commanders, think you, 
stands in the highest estimation of the kingi " Doubtless," 
said the poor man, " the king values him most who has the 
hardest task, and braves the greatest dangers." **Thou art 



380 



WAPvNJNGS. 



right," replied the Bishop ; " and now apply this to thy case 
and mine ; for my heart is like the castle of Montleberg, and 
thine like that of La Eochelle " {Clergijman's Magazine). 

Must be perpetual. Among men engaged in war, peace 
may be made to the advantage of all parties ) but in the 
spiritual warfare there is no peace. It would be the peace of 
the wolf with the lamb ; of the fire with the tow ; the peace 
of submission to Satan and eternal death. Believers may 
not be always in the battle ; but they are always in the 
field. 

The honour. During our Queen's visit to France, the 
royal party were about leaving for the Tuileries. A guard 
of soldiers were in attendance, in the front rank of whiA 
was an old veteran on crutches. He had been frightfully 
wounded before Sebastopol — one of his legs shattered, and 
his head much injured ; but he was so anxious to see the 
Queen of England that he begged to be in the front rank, 
and his request was granted. The Emperor saw him, in- 
quired who he was, sent for him, and was so much affected 
that he took from his own uniform the cross of the Legion 
of Honour, and placed it on the warrior's breast. Oh, 
Christian, think of the day when Christ shall give with his 
own hands, once nailed to the cross, the crown to every 
faithful one who fought for Him. 

The reward. " It is observed of our neighbours in tho 
Netherlands," says Gurnall, that whereas other nations 
used to be made poor by war, they had grown rich with it, 
because with their wars they have enlarged their trade and 
traffic abroad. And if thou. Christian, wouldest thrive by 
all thy temptations, thou must take the same course j what- 
ever thou doest, starve not thy trade with heaven.'' 

waexi:n'gs. 

In every clock there is what clockmakers call the warning- 
pin, which gives notice before the clock strikes the hour. 
The alarum. " Will it make a loud noise ? " asked a 



WASTE. 



881 



mechanic, wnen "wishing to buy an alarum clock. The 
clockmaker let him hear it. It was loud, and the man at 
once bought it, and took it home. The first morning, the 
effect was all that he wished ; he was roused from his 
slumbers, and was soon out of bed, and prepared to go to his 
morning's work. But by-and-by the effect grew less : the 
noise was of course the same, but the sleeper heard it less ; 
and after a longer while still, he slept on undisturbed, and had 
to learn that no warning, however loud, will be effectual, 
unless met by corresponding strength of will and resolution 
on the part of the person warned. 

The serpent. The common notion about the spring of 
the serpent is mistaken. Those who have watched the 
creature say, that it gradually uncoils itself before it makes 
its spring. So it is with most calamities and disorders. 
There is generally time to do something to avert or avoid 
them : but we are fascinated by the sense of danger, and 
watch the uncoiling without doing anything to help our- 
selves " {Sir A, Heljps). 

WASTE. 

Arabic proverb : Too much is the father of too little." 

How few people realize the enormous waste going on all 
the year in our country. We are a wealthy people, but 
no less certainly a wasteful people. As to our wealth, 
the aggregate property of the kingdom is valued at 
£6,000,000,000, and the value is on the increase. The total 
annual income of the nation is about £1,000,000,000. As to 
the waste, there is, e.^., the waste of money on perso7ial attire ; 
an idea of which may be formed, when it is known that 
something like £370,000,000 are annually spent on dress 
and luxuries by about 450,000 families. Of course, every 
one will try to keep up his position ; but how many are 
there without position, who yet go in for the gorgeous in 
their apparel. Fashion is a tyrant ; but Mr. Hoyle, the 
well-known recorder of national finance, estimates, that 



882 



WATCHFULNESS. 



allowing reasonably for fashion, £120,000,000 might be 
saved, and people look all the better for the modesty of their 
attire. 

Of the ANNUAL EARNINGS of the WORKING CLASSES. It 

is estimated that full 30 per cent, of these might be saved 
(see Working Classes), 

Coal. Dr. Siemens, in a lecture at Southampton, stated 
that less than thirty years ago our gas-makers were glad to 
give their waste to any one who would save them the trouble 
and expense of removing it. JS'ow, taking the value of coal 
in making gas at 9,000,000 tons at lis. ^. e. £5,400,000 ; the 
waste can be sold as colouring matter for dyes, £3,350,000 ; 
sulphate of ammonia nearly £2,000,000 ; pitch, creosote, 
carbolic acid, £675,000; or about £6,000,000 sterling, 
besides gas-coke, 4,000,000 tons, after using 2,000,000 for 
working the retorts. 

Waste-paper. An advertisement appeared in 1880 from 
one of our public offices inviting tenders for the year's waste- 
paper, which was estimated at 1500 tons. !N'ow, as there are 
only 300 working days in the year, this gives about five tons 
waste for every day in the year. Two years ago the waste- 
paper of one of our principal railways was valued at £1700. 

" Waste not, want not." Sir Walter Scott set a good 
example in having these words carved in stone over the 
kitchen fire-place at Abbotsford. Perhaps there is no nation 
where there is more waste of food than in England. 

WATCHFULNESS. 
There are two main motives to watchfulness. First, 
our landlord is ready to come for his rent ; secondly, our 
enemy is ready to assault our fort. And let me add, the 
tenement we dwell in is so weak and ruinous that it is ever 
and anon ready to drop down about our ears. He that dwells 
in a rotten, ruinous house, dares scarce sleep in a tempestuous 
night. Our bodies are earthly, decayed, or at least decaying 
tabernacles; every little disease, like a storm, totters us 



WATER, 



383 



They were indeed, at first, strong cities ; but we then by sin 
made them forts of rebels. Whereupon our offended liege 
sent his serjeant, Death, to arrest us of high treason, and 
though for His mercies* sake in Christ He pardoned our sins, 
yet He suffers us no more to have such strong houses ; but 
lets us dwell in thatched cottages, paper walls, mortal bodies " 
{Adams). 

" A SENTINEL, posted on the walls, when he discovers a 
hostile party advancing, does not attempt to make head 
against them himself, but informs his commanding officer of 
the enemy's approach, and leaves him to take the proper 
means against the foe. So the Christian does not attempt 
to fight temptation in his own strength ; his watchfulness 
lies in observing its approach, and in telling God of it by 
prayer " ( W. Mason). 

Pharisaism rebuked. It was my custom in my youth," 
said a celebrated Persian writer, to rise from my sleep to 
watch and pray and read the Koran. One night when I was 
thus engaged, my father, a man of practical virtue, awoke. 
* Behold,' said I to him, ' thy other children are lost in 
slumber, while I alone am awake to praise God.' * Son of 
my soul/ said he, * it is better to sleep than wake to remark 
the faults of thy bretliren' " (Handbook of Illustrations), 

WATEE. 

What a wonderful part it plays in the economy of, 
nature ! " It covers more than two-thirds of the entire 
globe; it is universally diffused through the ambient air; by 
the clouds it tempers the force of the fiery sun ; it drapes the 
heavens with curtains of the most gorgeous colours, dyed in 
the rosy tints of morn or in evening^s golden hues ; and it 
fills the floating reservoirs of the sky, and descends, when 
burst by lightning, or breaking by their own weight, in 
refreshing showers on the thirsty ground. The circulation of 
the fluid is to the world what that of blood is to the body, or 
that of grace to the souL It is its life. Withdraw it, and 



384 



WATER, 



all that lives would expire : forests, fields, beasts, man himself 
-would die. The world would become one vast grave ; for 
water constitutes as much the life as the beauty of the land- 
scape ; and it is true, both in a spiritual and an earthly sense, 
that the world lives because heaven weeps over it" {Dr, 
Gut] trie). 

The traveller's palm. The wonderful faculty found in 
many trees in tropical countries of supplying cool and refresh- 
ing water is one of the wonderful and benevolent kindnesses 
of ]^ature. There is a palm-tree growing in Madagascar 
known by the name of the Traveller's Palm, It has a very 
liandsome appearance, the large leaves starting out like wings 
from opposite sides of the trunk. The stalk of each leaf 
rises immediately over the one below, and forms at its base a 
large cavity where a large quantity of moisture is collected 
and preserved. The thirsty native has but to raise his spear, 
and on piercing the thick, firm end of a leaf-like stalk, obtains 
a welcome and abundant supply of cool, pure, fresh water, 
even in the hottest and driest season of the year. 

The delicious coolness of fruit, which many tropical trees 
yield on the hottest days in summer, has often been the 
wonder and admiration of travellers. ISTothing can be more 
refreshing than to pluck such fruit ; yet if not eaten immedi- 
ately this coolness is lost. So God provides refreshment for the 
Christian traveller by the way ; only these are more abiding, 
and we need not fear they will quickly lose their charm. 

Weeding and watering. Charles the Fat was very fond 
of visiting the monastery of St. Gall, where lived JSTotker, the 
composer of " In the midst of life we are in death." Once he 
sent a message to !Notker to ask for some advice as to the 
conduct of his soul. Notker was in the garden watering and 
weeding when the messenger spoke to him. **Tell the king," 
he said, "to do as I am doing now." Charles, when he 
heard this, exclaimed, " Yes, this is the sum of all. Away 
with the weeds of vice, and water the herbs of grace 
{Misswner's Manual), 



WATEE. 



The still and ruffled surface. " When the water of 
a gently flowing river is unruffled and clear it reflects most 
beautifully the floating clouds and the overhangiug objects ; 
but when agitated it becomes in a great measure opaque, and 
loses its power of reflection. So it is with the faith of Chris- 
tians ; when clear and lively how strong and beautiful are its 
reflections of the things of God, which as objects hang over 
it j but when it is deadened by the influence of the world, or 
corrupted with sin of any degree, its clearness disappears, and 
the spiritual things of God are lost from its bosom " {John 
Bate). 

The cup of cold water. " There is a pleasant story told 
of a man living on the borders of an African desert, who 
carried daily a pitcher of cold water to the dusty thorough- 
fare, and left it for any -thirsty t.aveller who might pass that 
way. And our Saviour said, * Whosoever shall give to drink 
unto one of these little ones, a cup of cold water only in the 
name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise 
lose his reward.' But cups of cold water are not given in 
African deserts alone. A spiritual Sahara spreads over the 
whole earth, and to its fainting travellers, many a ready hand 
holds forth the grateful * cup,' " — {Susan M. Undenuood), 

Hagar's well. It is said that some years ago a vessel 
sailing on the northern coast of the South American conti- 
nent, was observed to make signals of distress. When hailed 
by another vessel they reported themselves dying for want of 
water. " Dip it up, then," was the response ; you are in 
the mouth of the Amazon river." There was fresh water all 
round, and they had nothing to do but take it, yet they were 
dying from thirst because they thought themselves surrounded 
by the salt sea. How often are men ignorant of their mercies. 
Jesus is near, but they know it not. The well was close by, 
but Hagar did not see it. 

Hidden springs. "After the battle of Maiward in India 
the retreat to Candahar was most painful. It was fii'ty-two 
miles by day and by night, in the midst of frightful suffering 

c c 



386 



WEAKNESS. 



from the burning heat and want of water. Many valuable 
lives were lost during that terrible march, men lying on the 
road dying of thirst. The following day a party was sent out 
from Candahar to help the suffering, and to try to find out 
those who had sunk from thirst and exhaustion. One soldier 
found a well of pure water quite close to the road on which 
the poor fellow had travelled all the night. ' Oh, sir,' he 
said to his officer, ^ if we had but known of this in the 
night, it would have been life to many of our brave 
fellows.''' 

WEAKNESS. 

There is in the world more weakness than wickedness. 
Men sin more from weakness than from deliberate design and 
settled purpose. 

IN'ature. The most important plants in the world are 
generally plain and humble in appearance : the tea plant, the 
tobacco plant, the corn, &c. 

It is remarkable, too, how nature, or rather the God of 
nature, has made kind provision for the weak and feeble. 
Plants, unable to stand themselves, are provided with ten- 
dril^, like the vine and the ivy, to entwine themselves around 
some friendly holdfast ; animals that are timid and feeble 
are generally endowed with cunning and little arts of self- 
protection. So good God is in all His work. 

The CHURCH of Christ is often weak ; not because Christ 
is weak, but because she will not take more of Christ's 
strength. 

JSTo fortress is stronger than its weakest point. 

It is a rule in cavalry advance, not to start at a greater 
pace than that of the slowest horse. 

" When used by faith weakness is the mightiest thing on 
earth, for it affords room for God, and the power of God, to 
work" (H, Bonar), 



WELLS. 



337 



WELLS. 

One of the wonders of nature is the supply of fresh 
water found in the wells of coral islands. Scarcely has the 
bare rock of a coral island risen above the waves before it 
begins to possess its well of water. Whence comes this fresh 
spring of life ? The salt ocean is everywhere without, and 
the salt water fills the lagoon usually included within ; yet 
on this mere rim of coral rock that lies between, directly a 
hole is bored, fresh water is found. So generally is this 
known to sailors, that they are in the habit of touching at 
these solitary spots to fill their tanks. There are different 
attempts to account for the phenomenon, none of them more 
than plausible. A devout mind cannot but see in it the 
kind providential arrangement which prepares the island for 
future inhabitants ; whilst the spiritual mind may gather a 
beautiful illustration how the gieat God, one in nature and 
in grace, is ever ready to provide for His people springs of 
comfort in unlikely places, and where all around is salt. So 
He renews His moral mercies, and turns the bitter water into 
sweet. 

WIND. 

" Stormy wind fulfilling His word " (Ps. cxlviii. 8). 
" 'No w^onder that David should find room for the stormy 
wind in this choir of his ! It is God's great organ. What 
else is there so grand ] To stand upon the rugged coast on 
some wild day, and to watch the great crested breakers driven 
on before the storm ; to see them dashed upon the rocks 
with thunder, flinging the showers of spray far up the cliffs, 
whilst the angry blast roars out its triumph. Then the fierce 
wands go sweeping up the rocky heights, and on across the 
plain. They roar and rattle round the sleeping city, moaning 
here and there at door and window ; then all fuiious again 
they fly roaring up the bleak hill-side. 

" And is not this a purpose of the ' stormy wind ' ] To stir 
the depths of the soul, to move us to awe. The voices of 

C C 2 



388 



WIND. 



the storm are majesty, grandeur, sublimity. They put us in 
possession of lengths and depths within ourselves that were 
untouched before; feelings at once lowlier and loftier, and so 
life's dead levels get broken in upon, and the poetry tLat 
God has put into the darkest soul is awakened by the sweep 
of the storm. There are voices within us that answer to the 
call and cries of nature, as the son knew the language of his 
father's hired servants, and loved to hear them tell forth the 
glory of their master. Deep calleth unto deep. Ho has 
some defect in his nature — stone-blindness, stone-deafness — 
who does not see and hear God in the storm. Fierce win! 
and fire and earthquake are the coursers of the King, harnessed 
to His chariot. Go and stand forth upon the mount, with 
wrapped faces and bent knee, listening for His voice ; for 
they bring Him in His majesty to speak to us. So is it still, 
as in Eden of old, we hear the voice of the Lord God walking 
in the garden on the luind (marg.) of the day. 

"And so is the ' stormy wind ' not only God's greafc organ; 
it is His organist too, bringing out of us, and of the earth, 
the sublimest music with which we can adore Him " (i^ei;. 
Mark Guij Pearse). 

" Some years ago I had gone out one evening with a fish- 
erman for a night on the deep. It was towards the end of 
August, and on our drifting out of the harbour with the tide 
nothing could be more beautiful. Behind us the sun was 
setting, all gold and crimson. Under the wooded hills lay 
the little town with its canopy of blue smoke. The brown 
sails of the fishing-boats and the rigging of the larger ships 
were perfectly reflected in the glassy water ; so still that 
ti l ere was not a ripple to break it. But about one in the 
m' rning up sprang a breeze, and by the time we had got well 
off the land it freshened to a gale. There was nothing for it 
but to run straight before the wind to the nearest harbour 
that we could make, some fifty miles away. On we flew 
over tremendous seas, with now and then unpleasant tokens 
of what our fate might be. About eight next morning the little 



WINTER. 



389 



harbour hove in sight ; there were the piers, with just a wind- 
ing, narrow channel between them, and on them a crowd 
that watched us eagerly with shouts and signals. Onward 
we swept, past the waves that tumbled and broke on the 
rocks to the right and left of us ; and then, in a moment, 
that blessed calm. We breathed again in safety, and gave God 
thanks. I had seen that little place many times before, and 
had put it down as hopelessly dull and dreary ! A muddy 
harbour, an uninteresting people, an unromantic coast. But 
that day I knew no other place that could compare with it. 
I blessed the rocky walls of the little port. I loved each 
villager of the place ; and lying there, with the quiet water 
rippling round the boat, whilst outside there boomed the 
thunder of the waves, and overhead the storm raging furi- 
ously, it seemed the perfection of beauty. The * stormy 
wind ' had revealed its wrath. He who has not been tossed 
by stormy winds has never seen the might of the Lord's 
power ; has not proved in all its fulness how blessed is the 
power of the Saviour's love " (Ibid.). 

Influence of little things. On the summit of a hill 
in a western State is a court-house, so situated that the rain- 
drops that fall on one side of the roof descend into Lake 
Erie, and thence through the St. Lawrence into the Atlantic. 
The drops on the other side trickle down from rivulet to 
river, until they reach the Ohio and Mississippi, and enter 
the ocean by the Gulf of Mexico. A faint breath of wind 
determines the destination of these rain-drops for three thou- 
sand miles. So a single act determines sometimes a human 
destiny for all time and for eternity " (Cuyler), 

Wi:^TEE. 

How TO KEEP WARM. " If you would keep warm in the 
cold season take these four directions : (1) Get into the sun ; 
under His blessed beams there are warmth and comfort. 
(2) Go near the fire — *Is not My word like firel' How 
many cheering passages are there ! (3) Keep in motion and 



390 



WISDOM, 



action, stirring up the grace and gift of God that is in you; 
(4) Seek Christian communion. How can one be warm 
alone 1 " {Philijp Henry to his daughter), 

WISDOM. 

The way of salvation the only true wisdom. " Sin is 
the greatest folly, and the sinner the greatest fool in this world. 
There is no such madness in the most fitful lunacy. Think 
of a man risking eternity and his everlasting happiness on 
the uncertain chance of surviving another year ! Think of a 
man purchasing a momentary pleasure, at the cost of endless 
shame ! Think of a dying man living as if he were never to 
die ! Think of a man scorning a Saviour's love ! Think of a 
man braving the wrath of God ! Think of man rejecting an 
immortal crown ! What convert to God can review his life 
and look back upon his unconverted state, without saying 
with Asaph, * Lord, I was as a beast before Thee ' " (Dr. 
Guthrie), 

" Conversion, while it restores God to the heart, restores 
reason also to its throne. Time and eternity are now seen 
in their just proportions, in their right relative dimension ; 
the one in its littleness, and the other in its greatness. When 
the light of heaven rises on the soul, oh what grand and 
affecting discoveries does she make of the exceeding evil of 
sin ; of the holiness of the Divine law ; of the infinite purity 
of Divine justice ; of the grace and greatness of Divine love. 
On Sinai's summit and on Calvary's cross, what new truths, 
what sublime scenes, open to his astonished eyes ! By one. 
convulsive bound he now leaps to the conclusion that salva- 
tion is the one thing needful, and that if a man will give all 
that he hath for the life that now is, much more shall he part 
with all for the life to come. Between the Saviour and 
Satan, the soul and the body, holiness and sin, with their 
competing claims, reason now holds the balance even ; and 
man finds, in the visit of converting grace, what the demoniac 
found in Jesus's advent. He whose dwelling was among the 



WORK. 



391 



tombs, whom no chains could bind, appears sitting at the feet 
of Jesus, ' clothed, and in Ms right mind ' — [Ibid.). 

" The wisest in the world are most commonly fools for 
celestial blessing, as wicked men can mind those things which 
are of the flesh, not of the spirit. The prophet Jeremiah 
compounds both these, and shows how wisdom and folly may 
concur in one man (chap. iv. 22) : " They are wise to do evil, 
but to do good they have no knowledge.^' Let them war, 
they have their stratagems ; let them plot in peace, they have 
their policies. For hunting, they have nets ; for fowling, 
they have guns ; for fishing, baits : not so much as even in 
husbandry but the professors have their reaches. They know 
which way the market goes ; which way it will go. Even 
tradesmen have their mysteries — mystery indeed, for the 
mystery of iniquity is in them ; they have a stock of good 
w^ords to put off a stock of bad wares. In these particular 
qualities they are able to school Machiavelli. But draw them 
from their centre — earth, and put off their circumference, 
worldly policies, and you have not more simple fools. They 
have no acquaintance with God's statutes, and therefore no 
marvel if they misjudge vices for virtues ; as Zebul told Gaal, 
that he mistook * the shadows of mountains as if they were 
men ' (Judges ix. 36). A man may easily ruin his soul upon 
the rocks of rebellion, while he neither looks to the card of 
conscience, nor regards the compass of faith " [Adams). 

WOEK 

Better wear out than rust out. Perhaps the proverb 
would be better if w^e said, Better to wear on, than to rust 
out. People don't so often wear out through work as is 
imagined. And nothing keeps up the strength of body and 
mind like regular and healthy employment. A i^ew England 
manufacturer kept his mills running at a time when trade 
was depressed, and there was no demand for his goods. A 
neighbour asked him if he was not doing this at a daily loss. 
" Well," was the answer,^*' that depends upon how you count 



392 



WOEE, SPIRITUAL. 



the loss. I get less money than I pay out every day, I know ; 
"but I lose less by running at that loss than I should lose by 
stopping the mills, and letting the machinery rust and every- 
thing go to waste by not being used." 

A LADY was watching a potter at his work, whose one foot 
was kept with ''never-slackening speed, turning his swift 
wheel round," while the other rested patiently on the ground. 
When the lady said to him in a sympathizing tone, " How 
tired your foot must be,*' the man raised his eye, and said, 
" [N'o, ma'am ; it isn't the foot that works that's tired ; it's 
the foot that stands I That's it." 

If you want to keep your strength, use it. If you want to 
get tired, do nothing. As a matter of fact, we all know that 
the last man to go to for a helping hand for any new under- 
taking, is the man who has plenty of time on his hands. It 
is the man or woman who are doing most, who are most 
willing to do a little more. 

What men might accomplish if they used their time and 
power aright. Did you ever reckon that in the mature part 
of life there are for every working man at least 135,000 
hours to worki — say from 20 — 65, 45 years. Throw out all 
the Sundays, and take 13 days every year for sickness, vaca- 
tions, &c., there are left 300 days, or in 45 years 13,500 
days ; and if a man work 10 hours each, it will give 135,000 
hours. If this be thought more than is given to most men, 
it should be considered that is not reckoning a single hour 
before 20, and most working men have begun their time of 
labour long before then. In any case, few men, if any, can 
say they have not time to do something good and useful in 
the world. 

WOEK, SPIEITUAL. 
In season, out of season." " Look at yon miller on 
the village mill 1 How does he grind his grist 1 Does he 
bargain that he will only grind in the west wind, because 
its gales are so full of health? Noj but the east windj 



WORKING CLASSES. 



393 



wMcli searches joints and marrow, makes the millstones 
revolve, and, together with the north and the south wind, is 
yoked to his service. Even so should it be with yon, who 
are true workers for God ; all your nps and downs, your 
successes and your defeats, should be turned to the glory of 
God {Spur g eon). 

Its truest honour. " Of the old hero the minstrel sung : 
* With his Yemen sword for aid, ornament it carried none 
but the notches on the blade.' What nobler declaration of 
honour can any good man seek after than his scar of service, 
his losses for the cross, his reproaches for Christ's sake, his 
being worn out in his Master's service 1 " (Ibid,). 

WOEKING CLASSES. 

Their earnings. Professor Leone Levi, at the request of 
Mr. Bass, M.P., prepared a statement of the earnings of the 
working classes. The population of the country, which in 
1871 was 31,513,000, in 1878 was 33,729,100. The number 
of persons engaged in different industries being 11,509,000 ; 
composed of 7,890,000 men, and 3,685,000 women. The 
average wages for all the most skilled artisans were 336'. to 
35^. a week. The total amount of the gross earnings of the 
working classes in the United Kingdom may be stated at 
about £563,000,000. Deduct from this 7|- per cent, for 
holidays, and other suspensions of labour, estimated at four 
weeks in the year, and 2| per cent, for the number of master- 
men not distinguished in the census, and there remains a 
total of £452,700,000. 

Women's wages have advanced more than men's, especially 
for domestic servants and dressmakers. In 1866 the total 
amount of saving belonging to the working classes, invested 
in Trustees and Savings' Banks, was £44,503,000 ; 1877, 
£72,980,000 ; the amount held by Friendly Societies in 1864 
was £5,362,000 ; in 1874, £9,038,000, making an average 
increase of saving for the last ten years of £3,200,000 a year. 

How IS THE MONEY SPENT ? Professor Leoni Levi, again, 



394 



WORKING CLASSES. 



in his excellent pamphlet, ' Work and Pay/ says : " I have 
, estimated the total annual wages and earnings of the working 

1 classes at the large amount of £400,000,000, including 
money and money's worth ; but take no account of money's 
worth, and assume only £300,000,000 in hard cash as falling 
into the hands of our working classes. And in the propor- 
tion given, the money should go in the following shapes : 
£180,000,000 would be expended on food and drink; 
£36,000,000 in rent; £6,000,000 in firing and light; 
£30,000,000 in clothing ; £3,000,000 in newspapers, omni- 
buses, and railway travelling; £12,000,000 in church, edu- 
cation, and charity ; £6,000,000 in amusements ; while 
£15,000,000 would be reserved for savings. But is the 
money so expended ? Let us see. We may fairly assume 
that the £180,000,000 is fully expended in food. The 
£36,000,000 laid down for house rent tallies, so far, with 
the census report* of 1871, showing that the rental of houses 
under £20 had an estimated annual value of £32,000,000. 
Fire and light will cost quite as much as I have estimated. 
The amount given for clothing is, I fear, rather below than 
above the amount annually expended. And so probably the 
amount given for amusements, and other items. But as for 
the £12,000,000 expended in church, education, and charity, 
and £15,000,000 reserved for saving, alas! where are they 
No ; my calculations are fallacious in two distinct items. 
Instead of the 60 per cent, given for food covering the 
amount expended in drink, that item to the extent of fully 
15 per cent, of the whole income, or £45,000,000, and also 

2 per cent., or £6,000,000, for tobacco ; in all, £51,000,000, 
must be added as a separate and additional expenditure. 
But if this large amount be really so expended, as is, un- 
happily, most likely to be the fact, if it be not, indeed, greatly 
exceeded, what remains for church, education, and charity, or 
for savings, or for any other rational purpose? Positive- 
ly nothing. The little saved— probably £3,000,000 or 
£4,000,000 a year — as indicated in the annual increase of 



WORKING CLASSES, 



395 



the amount in the savings' banks, friendly and building 
societies, co-operative societies, etc., is the fruit of the 
economies of some famihes, too few in number to constitute 
any perceptible per centage in the whole number of the 
working population of the country." 

Take another testimony. It appears from the calcula- 
tion of Mr. Grey and Mr. Eaxter that the total income of the 
working classes in this country may be taken at £300,000,000. 
Mr. Smiles, in his * Self -Help,' reckons, on pretty good data, 
that the expenditure of these classes on drink and tobacco 
cannot be less than £60,000,000, of which two-thirds he 
considers as excessive, extravagant, and noxious. But to be 
within the mark, suppose it to be only £30,000,000, it then 
appears that the working classes waste or throw away ten 
per cent, of their hard-earned receipts. Another ten per 
cent. , Mr. Smiles shows, is lost by the unsound condition of 
the retail system, which supplies their weekly consumption. 
Probably, also, another part, a fifth per cent., if not nearer a 
tenth, is wasted by mere unthriftiness, by unskilful or care- 
less marketing, housekeeping, and cooking. Besides which, 
in a large section, a further most unprofitable tax is levied 
upon them in contributions to trade unions and strikes. It 
seems clear, therefore, that of all the money our artisan 
manufacturers and other working classes toil so hard to earn, 
fully 30 per cent, might be saved, which is now lost, and 
that without any new laws or higher wages, but by thrift, 
economy, and morals, and religion. 

Every year, therefore, as it was said in the ^ Quarterly 
Review,' the working classes have it in their power to become 
capitalists to an extent that would enable them to start 500 
cotton-mills, or iron-works, or coal-mines, on their own 
aecouni ; or to purchase 50,000 acres of land, and set up 
50,000 families, each with a nice little surrounding of ten 
acres of freehold; and all this by simply abstaining from 
strong drink — to say nothing of what might be done by saving 
in other ways. 



396 



VrORLD. 



Higher wages— do they bring more happiness? It is 
sad to think what the answer must be if given candidly, 
according to facts. But all who have lived in our great 
manufacturing towns, are too w^ell aware how any great 
increase of wages among the working classes is too generally 
spent with the most lavish extravagance. As an illustra- 
tion, in a speech by Canon Ellison, a few years ago, he said : 
" In a large and wealthy coal and iron district, the wages 
were, in 1869, 5s. a day; at that time the crimes and con- 
victions were 1335; and the fines paid by the men for 
neglecting woik amounted to £495. In 1870 wages were 
6s. a day; crimes and convictions, 1775 ; fines, £562. In 
1871 wages were 7^. a day; crimes and convictions, 1894; 
fines, £606. In 1872 wages were 8s. a day ; crimes and 
convictions, 2818; fines, £1304. In 1873 wages rose to 
lis. a day ; crimes and convictions, 4402 ; and fines, £2669. 

Saint Monday." A calculation has been made by one 
of our largest iron- workers, that somewhere about £45,000 is 
lost to their firm alone, because the workmen will not go to 
Avork on Monday, chiefly owing to their Sunday drinkings. 
Mr. Samuel Morley, speaking on the same point at Exeter 
Hall, stated as a commercial man that it is calculated little 
short of £25,000,000 to £30,000,000 a year is wasted by 
the working classes, because they refuse to work on Mondays. 

WOELD. 

The Christian's thoroughfare, not his home. The 
wwld is full of troubles ; winds of persecutions, storms of 
menaces, cold of uncharitableness, heat of malice, exhala- 
tions of prodigious terrors, will annoy thee. Love it not. 
Who can affect his own vexation? It is thy thoroughfare; 
God loves thee better than to let it be thy home " (Adams), 

'^LovE NOT THE WORLD," saith St. John (Epistle II. 15); 
yet make use of it, saith St. Paul. Use the world, but enjoy 
God ; for the world waxeth old as a garment, and fadeth 
away (1 Cor. vii. 31 ; Heb. i. 11). But Jesus Christ is 



WORLD. 



397 



tlie same yesterday, to-day, and for ever " (cli. xiii. 8). The 
world, like fire, though a good servant, will be an ill master. 
Make it thy slave ; it is not good enough to be thy husband. 

The Church's influence on the world. The sand-reed 
which grows on the sandy shores of Europe represents the 
influence of religion and the Church upon society. Its roots 
penetrate to a considerable depth, and spread in all directions, 
forming a network which binds together the loosest sands ; 
while its strong tall leaves protect the surface from drought, 
and afford shelter to small plants, which soon grow between 
the reeds, and gradually form a new green surface on the bed 
of sand. But for the sand-reed, the sea-wind would long 
since have wafted the drift-sand far into the interior of the 
country, and have converted many a fruitful acre into a 
waste ; but that invaluable grass opposes its stubborn resist- 
ance to the most furious gale {Hartnng), 

"If it be the characteristic of the worldly man that he 
desecrates what is holy, it should be the aim of the Christian 
to consecrate what is secular, and to recognize a present and 
presiding Divinity in all things " {Dr. Chalmers). 

''The world passeth away, and the lust thereof, and 
you cannot keep it, do what you will. Go down to the sea- 
shore and fill your hand with sand. Grasp those grains as 
ti^^htly as you can, till you find that you cannot retain them. 
The sand is still slipping away, slipping away, till by-and-by 
nothing is left. And such are the acqui?iitions of life ; you 
grasp them, but cannot keep them — ' The world passeth 
away, and the lust thereof.' You love it very dearly, do 
youl But does it love you? What does it care for youl 
Ah, false and heartless world, how many of thy victims hast 
thou deceived, and left stranded and shipwrecked on the 
extreme shore of time ! Oh, hollow, fading, fleshly world, 
is it for thee men and women will barter everlasting heaven*? 
Passeth away ! passeth away ! The dreams of early boyhood, 
the hopes of youth, the promise of vigorous manhood, when 
with the firm step of a determined will we push on in life's 



398 



WORSHIP. 



Jiighway, our minds- made up to carry all before us — what do 
they all end in ? As the years roll on, our hopes dissolve, 
friends fall off, and the shadow of death is cast across our 
path ; pleasures cease to please, and employments lose their 
interest. It passeth away — all that we loved, and valued, 
and clung to — and vainly do we attempt to clutch the receding 
phantom" {Aitkeii), 

A TRUE Christian, animated by a new spirit, will as 
certainly cast off worldliness as the bud of spring, under the 
influence of expanding life, will cast off the husks by which 
it was bound. 

The cross of Christ takes us out of the world, the resur- 
rection of Christ takes us back into the world, but with a 
new principle, and with new motives. 

WOESHTP. 

What is worship? ''Dear friends, it is most important 
that we Christians should have clear views about worship. 
What does worship consist of ? . Surely not in prayer ; not 
in asking what w^e need. I don t mean to say that prayer is 
not a constituent part of worship ; but it falls very far short 
of being all, or even a very considerable portion of the 
w^orship that is due to God. ... Tne truest form of 
worship is, first of all, the presentation to God of all that is 
most precious, all that is most costly, that we have or that 
we are. He worships best who presents himself, and, above 
all, that heart of his, the home of his affections — that heart 
which Ciirist has liberated and set on fire with holy love. . . 
And there is another thought, closely connected with this. 
Mary worshipped well, not only because she gave Him her 
best, but because she saw the best that was in Him. The 
keen vision of her love had penetrated into the secret of His 
nature, and she observed what others did not. . . . How 
do they worship God in heaven ] They worship Him by 
gazing upon Him till their whole being is filled, and over- 
borne with the consciousness of what He is. To w^orship 



WOESHIP, PUBLIC. 



God because He is what He is ; to rejoice in the thought that 
He is what He is; to give thanks unto Him for His great 
glory — there is indeed the true secret of worship. They 
worship best who admire most. To receive His glory upon 
our own hearts as it streams forth from His Person in all its 
moral splendour, and then to reflect it back to Him and on 
all around, this is to worship indeed. . . . Yet, once again, 
they worship best whose worship springs from love, and 
whose acts of devotion are simply the articulate expression 
of a burning affection that throbs and glows within. Cold 
I rayers, spiritless praises, glorious words that have no counter- 
part in our inward consciousness, oh ! how wonderful must 
these be to Him who inhabiteth the praises of Israel. Surely 
these vain oblations and this unhallowed incense must be an 
abomination in His sight. But loving acts, that spring forth 
from the heaven-watered soil of loving hearts — floAvers of 
Paradise in a too loveless world — surely these must please the 
Lord better than a bullock that hath horns and hoofs ; and 
these love-offerings are only possible to those who lie much 
at His feet. For love grows not by m.ere labour, still less by 
mere mental knowledge ; love grows by communion (by 
spiritual familiarity shall I say '?) with the Divine. Alas ! 
how often do we fall from the proper level of the love-life 
because we are so hurried in our visits to His feet. We 
have scarce sat down and began to gaze, ere some earth-born 
care, or business, or pleasure, diverts us from our resting- 
place. And thus the mystic spell is broken, which love 
weaves around the once loveless human heart, to bring it into 
the sacred fellowship of love " (AitJien), 

WORSHIP, PUBLIC. 

The census of 185L According to the statistics pub- 
lished by Mr. Horace Mann, there were then 14,077 buildings 
belonging to the Church of England, and 20,399 belonging 
to the !N'onconformists (many of which, however, were not 
separate buildings, but small rooms), providing accommoda- 



400 



WOESHIP, PUBLIC. 



tion respectively — for Churcli of England, 5,307,915, and 
E'onconformists, 4,894,648. The actual attendance on the 
day the census was taken was — Church of England, morning, 
2,541,244; afternoon, 1,890,764 ; evening, 860,543: ISTon- 
conformists, morning, 2,106,238; afternoon, 1,293,371 ; 
evening, 2,203,906: total, morning, 4,647,482; afternoon. 
3,184,135 ; evening, 3,064,449; altogether, 10,896,066. 
Assuming that of the afternoon attendants half, and of the 
evening attendants one-third, had been at the morning service, 
Mr. Mann obtains the results of worshippers belonging to 
the Church of England, 3,773,474, and to the ll^onconform- 
ists, 3,487,558, or together, 7,261,032, out of a population of 
18,500,000 ; or in the proportion of 52 Churchmen to 48 
l!Tonconformists. 

The estimates made in more recent years, greatly varying, 
all call for the deepest concern. It is said by many, and was 
corroborated by the Eeport of the Church Pastoral Aid Society, 
in 1881, that " nine-tenths of the working classes of the large 
towns do not attend any place of worship." Bishop Eraser 
states that in *'one parish containing 8000 souls, in Man- 
chester, only 400 attend any service, and of these only 40 are 
communicants. In another parish, only about 300 out of 
1200 families even profess to belong to any Church." The 
Bishop of Winchester, in a letter to the ' Times * only lately, 
stated that the working men were not found to attend 
church or chapel except in the small proportion of 1 in 50, 
or 2 in every 100. A recent newspaper census shows that 
in ten of the largest towns in England, the number of persons 
actually present at the particular services in all the churches 
and chapels amounted to only 19 per cent. In Liverpool, 
Bishop Eyle stated, out of 57,000 professed Church people, 
only 3500 were at morning and evening service on a particu- 
lar Sunday when an account was taken. The Eev. W. H. 
Webb Peploe stated in the same way, that in thirty parishes 
in London, with a total population of 245,000, of whom 
67,000 were exceedingly poor, and 109,000 were mechanics, 



WORSHIP, PUBLIC. 



401 



there were 112 places of worship, and only 26,000 persons 
attended a religious service on April 16 last. 

Town and country. Dr. Hume of Liverpool showed hj 
a comparison of figures, some time ago, that a far larger 
numher of non-worshippers are to be found in the towns than 
in the rural districts. 

Sick and infirm. It is computed that about 1,000,000 of 
the population are absent from any public worship every 
Sunday, from sickness and physical infirmity. 

The last Sunday. Every one attending habitually the 
house of God, who dies, has his last Sunday there, though 
perhaps he little expected it at the time. What a solemnity 
would this impart to the service if each worshipper thought, 
This may he my last Sunday here! 

A GOOD REBUKE. Some few years ago, one of the Eed 
Indian native Christians was deputed by the Church of the 
Garden Eiver Mission to come to England, to plead for 
pecuniary help. During his stay in England, it was his 
custom always to attend the church, though unable to under- 
stand the service. He took with him his Chippeway Prayer 
Eook, and thus was enabled to realize the Communion of 
Saints, though not in the same language. What a rebuke to 
many professing English Christians, always ready with so 
many excuses for not attending the public means of grace. 

A LADY who had often attended church without thinking 
of the prayers she joined in, was one day much struck with 
the lust prayer in the service : " Fulfil now^ Lord, the 
desires and petitions of thy servants, as may be most expedi- 
ent for them the thought occurred to her : "What desires 
and petitions have I ofi^ered to God] I have never really 
asked God for anything." Conviction of a life of sin, and 
of her dead and profitless worship, flashed across her mind. 
The Holy Spirit worked within her heart, and the following 
Sunday she came to church in a very different spirit. With 
her whole heart she could then enter into the Confession 
wnth which the service begins : " We have erred and strayed 

D D 



402 



WORSHIP, PUBLIC. 



from Thy way like lost sheep. . . . "We have left undone 
those things which we ought to have done. We have done 
those things which we ought not to have done. And there 
is no health in us." 

London. It is computed that at the ordinary estimates 
for supplying the provision for public worship, London alone 
would now require 920 churches. But to build these in 
many parts of London, the site of a church will often cost as 
much as the church itself ; and before a brick can be laid, 
£5000 or £6000 must be given for the land. To lay it even 
at the very low average of £6000 for church and land, a 
sum of £550,000 would be required for these 920 churches. 
And then thirty new churches must be added every year, to 
keep pace with the enormous progress of the population, 
whilst the actual average is but sixteen. 

The terrible neglect and disregard of public worship 
among the working classes of this country, is a most mournful 
blot in our national character. Let any one walk down the 
streets in our large towns, of Liverpool, Manchester, Birming- 
ham, &c., where the artisan class live, on Sunday, and see 
the too-evident proof. It has been put in this way ; what 
should we think, if, some Sunday morning, not a single man, 
woman, or child went to church or chapel in the whole 
county of Bedford, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Cambridge- 
shire, and Dorsetshire ] Yet in Birmingham alone there are 
more people absent from church and chapel than in any one 
of these counties ! 

Archbishop Whateley says : " I remember a parishioner 
at Halesworth telling me that he thought persons should not 
go to church to be made uncomfortable. I replied, that I 
agreed with him ; but whether it should be the sermon or 
the hearer's life that should be altered, to avoid discomfort, 
must depend on whether the doctrine be right or wrong. 

" The cabman's dying cry. ' Fm dying — I feelFm dying 
— fetch some one to pray for me ! ' cried a poor cabman some 
time ago, who, having been thrown from his box, had 



WORSHIP^ PUBLIC. 



sustained a mortal injury, and who was told by the hospital 
surgeon that he would not live more than a few hours. 

" ' Eun, George, as fast as you can ! ' said the weeping wife 
to the poor lad, who had buried his face on the bed on 
which his dying father was laid. ' Eun and tell Mr. — — 
that your father has got nearly killed, and wants him to come 
and pray for him.' 

Whilst the sorrowful boy, who was soon to be a fatherless 
child, was threading his way along the busy streets of London 
up to the house where lived the minister of the parish in 
which the cabman resided^ the medical attendants and nurse 
did what they could to alleviate the agonies of the sufferer. 
Severe as his bodily pains were, they seemed to be slight 
compared with the horror of death which overwhelmed him. 

* I've been a wicked man ! Oh that I had lived a differ- 
ent life ! Oh that I had sought for mercy when in health ! 

it's too late now ! ' 

* * * * * 

" It was not long before the pious clergyman of 

church was bending over the yet breathing body of the 
cabman ; but life was nearly gone. 

The words of mercy — of pardon for the vilest of the vile, 
through faith in Christ — were sweetly sounded in his ears. 
He listened, but seemed not to comprehend their meaning. 
A convulsive struggle showed that the conflict was nearly 
over. 

" His half-closed eyes were once more opened, when, with 
an expiring efibrt, he muttered in a whisper — * I've had no 
Sundays ! ' 

Pen cannot describe, nor pencil depict, the look of despair 
with which these words were uttered. He spake no more. 
In a few moments his spirit departed, and the poor Sabbath- 
less cabman lay a cold and lifeless corpse, 

" Eeader ! are you doing what you can to secure to poor 
cabmen the blessing of a Sabbath-day" — {Illustrated 
Sahhath Facts), 

DD 2 



40i 



YOUNG. 



A YOUNG PRINCE askecl his tutor to give him some instruc- 
tion about preparing for death. " Plenty of time for that 
"vvhen you are older," was the reply. " ISTo," said the prince, 
" I have been to the churchyard and measured the graves, 
and I see there are many shorter than I am.'' 

It was the saying of La Bruyere : " The greater part of 
mankind spend their first years in making their last years 
miserable." 

We should think that farmer mad, who 'was found sow- 
ing his fields in September or October, when he ought to be 
xeaping the harvest ; is he a wiser man who would sow the 
seeds of the harvest he would like to reap in eternity, at the 
very end of his earthly life ] 

I YOUTH. 

A mother's influence. " A moment's work on clay tells 
more than an hour's labour on brick. So, work on hearts 
before they harden. During the first six or eight years of 
child-life, mothers have full sway ; and this is the time to 
make the deepest and most enduring impression on the 
human mind. 

^'I have found out what you are," said a gentleman one 
morning to President Adams; have been reading your 
mother's letter to her son." 

Washington's mother trained her boy to truthfulness and 
virtue ; and when his messenger called to tell her that her 
fion was raised to the highest post in the nation's gift, she 
simply said, " George always was a good boy." 

Mothers ! God has given you great privileges and respon- 
sibilities. Be faithful then to the little ones. You hold the 
key of their hearts now. If you once lose it, you would give 
the world to win it back. Use your opportunities before 
they pass'' {Hume Words). 

^' How charming the young would be to talk to, with their 
freshness, fearlessness, and truthfulness, if only, to take a 



YOUTH. 



405 



metaphor from painting, they would make more use of greysr 
and other neutral tints, instead of dabbing on so ruthlessly 
the strongest positives in colour ! It is, however, too much 
to ask from them to exhibit that moderation in the use of 
colour, which only large experiences, perhaps, can inculcate 
(Sir A. Helps), 

Dr. Leifchild records the interesting case of a young lady 
who came from the East Indies, and was of engaging manners 
and great personal attractions. Though strictly prohibited 
by her guardians from attending any ministry but that of the 
Church of England, she showed deep interest in Dr. Leif- 
child's visits and instruction. Eut though she listened atten-t 
tively and seemed impressed, she was young -and gaily 
disposed, and up to the time of her leaving, there was no 
evidence that any real change of heart had taken place. 
Finding her one morning at the piano, playing some sacred 
air with great spirit, when she paused for a few moments, he 
placed before her a sacred air, requesting her to sing some of 
the verses which he w^ould repeat. One of the verses was — 

Sweet to rejoice in lively hope, 
That when my change shall come, 

Angels shall hover round my bed 
To waft my spirit home." 

At this moment Dr. Leifchild was overcome by the emotions 
springing from a train of sentiments which rose in his mind, 
and could not refrain from tears. This she observed, and 
paused, saying, "Dear sir, what is the matter*?" '^Oh! 
Anne," replied Dr. Leifchild, "you are about to leave us^ 
never it is probable to see us again in this world ; and you 
are quitting us in a state of mind which makes me fear that 
angels will not hover around your bed to waft your spirit 
home." "But why not?" she rejoined, pleasantly, and yet 
there was a tear which she brushed away. Erom that hour 
Dr. Leifchild saw her no more. 

After a few years a young lady called upon him from 
India. She was the most intimate friend of this young 



406 



YOUTH. 



pupil, and called by lier desire soon after her return to 
India. She had married, and had become thoughtful, serious, 
and devout. But she fell into a rapid decline, and was quickly 
laid upon the fatal couch, to fade like a flower blighted on its 
stem. Before her death she asked her friend to call and see 
Dr. Leifchild, and tell him that the words he had spoken at 
the piano had never gone from her mind. " Tell him/' she 
said, ' * that I have been brought to the Saviour of whom I 
heard much at those early seasons, and have found Him to 
be my Saviour ; and tell him," she added, " that angels are 
hovering round my bed, to waft my spirit home, and that I 
hope to welcome him in that abode of the blessed, and to 
communicate to him in heaven what I now commission you 
to narrate to him on earth." 

Philip Henry, when young, made the following solemn 
vow : I take God the Father to be my shepherd ; I take 
God the Son to be my king and Saviour; I take God the 
Holy Ghost to be my guide and sanctifier ; I take the Bible to 
be my rule of life ; I take all God's people to be my friends ; 
and here I give my body and my soul to be God's, for God 
to use for ever.'* And he put at the end : ''I make this vow 
of my own mind freely. God give me grace to keep it." 

The testimony of an infidel. JSTot long ago a gentleman 
of strong infidel principles, who never opened a Bible or even 
attempted any form of religion, said: ''There is one thing 
which does make me think the Bible may be true. When I 
see a young man entirely changed, when I know what his 
life luasy and I see a reality in the change, I know that he 
can't be tired of the world ; and when I see that he has a 
happiness to which I am a stranger, I admit he is the strong- 
est proof, to my mind, that there must be something in 
religion after all." 

"Why weep so*?" "I remember one Sunday evening," 
says Captain Dawson, " after a mission sermon in a country 
village church, seeing an old man crying bitterlj^ I spoke 
to him, and asked him if soriow made him weep. He said, 



ZEAL. 



407 



« I never was so happy in my life. I have begun to live. I 
have found a Saviour.' 'Why then such tears r I asked. 
He replied, 'Eegret and sorrow, because I have lost my 
youth, and it might have been so different.' " 

ZEAL 

—Without knowledge is like mettle in a blind horse, or 
like a ship in full sail without a rudder. 

The power of zeal. " Bishop Latimer was not," says 
Bishop Kyle, " such a deeply-read scholar as Cranmer and 
Eidley. He could not quote Fathers from memory as they 
did. He refused to be drawn into arguments about antiquity. 
He stuck to the Bible. Yet it is not too much to say that 
no English reformer made such a lasting impression on the 
nation as old Latimer did. And what was the reason 1 His 
simple zeal. Baxter, the Puritan, was not equal to some of 
his contemporaries in intellectual gifts. It is no disparage- 
ment to say that he does not stand on a level with Manton 
and Owen. Yet few men probably exercised so wide an 
influence on the generation in which he lived. And what 
was the reason ] His burning zeal. Whitefield and Wesley, 
and Berridge, and Yenn, were inferior in mental attainments to 
Bishops Butler and Watson. But they produced effects which 
fifty Butlers and Watsons would probably never have pro- 
duced. And what was the secret of this power 1 Their zeal." 

" The root shows the nature of the branch. Zeal comes of 
a word framed of the very sound and hissing noise which hot 
coals or burning iron make, when they meet with their con- 
trary. In plain English, zeal is nothing but heat, from 
whence it is that zealous men are oft in Scripture said to burn 
in the Spirit" {S. Ward). 

Zeal is to the spirit what the spirits are to the body, wine 
to the spirits, putting vigour and agility into them. It is to 
the soul as wings to the fowl ; as wheels to the chariot ; as 
wind to the sails ; as courage to the soldier ; mettle to the 
horses; fertility to the ground; vivacity to all creatures. 



408 



ZEAL. 



" To conclude, tMs is tliat celestial fire wliicli was shadowed 
out unto us by that poor element in comparison and beggarly 
rudiment, the fire (I mean), of such necessary use in the law, 
which rather than it should be wanting, the Lord caused it 
to descend from heaven that it might cause the sacrifice to 
ascend thither again, as a sweet incense unto the Lord, with- 
out which no burnt-ofi'ering was acceptable " {Ibid.). 

" Some have a true zeal of a false religion, and others have 
a false zeal of a true religion. Paul, before his conversion, 
had a true zeal of a false religion (Gal. i. 14): 'I was 
exceedingly jealous of the traditions of my fathers.' The 
Laodiceans had a false, or rather cold, zeal of a true religion 
(Eev. iii. 15) : 'I know thy works, that thou art neither cold 
nor hot ' " (Adams), 

" It is good to be zealous in good things, and is it not 
best in the best ? or is there any better than God, or the 
kingdom of heaven ] Is it comely, whatever we do, to do it 
with our might 1 only uncomely when we serve God '? Is 
mean and mediocrity for all excellent arts excluded, and only 
to be admitted in religion ? Were it not better to forbear 
poetry or painting than to rhyme and daub 1 And were it 
not better to be of no religion, than to be cold and lukewarm 
in any ] Is it good to be earnest for a friend, and cold for 
the Lord of hosts ] For whom dost thou reserve the top of 
thy afi'ection? for thy goldl for thy Herodias'? &c. O 
ye adulterers and adulteresses, can ye offer God a baser indig- 
nity % Ought not all the springs and brooks of our affection 
to run unto this main 1 May not He justly disdain that the 
least rivulet should be drained another way ] That anything 
in the world should be respected before Him, equalled with 
Him, or loved out of Him, of whom, for whom, and through 
whom, are aU things 1 Who or what can be sufficient for 
Him — our Maker and Saviour 1 In other objects fear excess ; 
here no ecstasy is high enough ! {S, Ward), 



INDEX. 



Abanzit, patience of, 214 
Abderman, on happiness, 105 
Accidents, 1 ; number of children 

burnt to death, 38 ; the Cornish 

miner, 158 
Adanson : example of kindness, 131 
Adoption, 2 
Advice, 2 

Africa, missions in, 174-5 ; com- 
municants, 51 

Agricultural facts, 3; emig-ration, 
75 

Alabama, origin of the word, 272 
Almost too late, 358 
Alpine flowers, 81 
Amelia, Princess, 367 
America, education in, 73 ; emigra- 
tion to, 73—75 
Amnesty, 216 

Amusement, 4 {See Theatres); 

monev spent by working classes 

on, 394 
Angel in the marble, 101 
Answers to prayer, 5; example of, 

213 ; delay in, 235 
Anti-slavery Society, 8 
Appearances, judge not by, 358 
Appropriation, 11 
Arago, 222 

Arbitration, national, 377 

Army, 11. See Soldiers, War, 
Warfare. 

Arnold, Dr., 69, 122 

Atonement. See Appropriation, 
Blood of Christ. 

Australia, emigration to, 73; re- 
markable testimony to honour- 
ing the Sabbath, 287 

Banners, national, 191 ; the dying 

warrior, 378 
Barrenness, 13, 319 



Bastile, incident connected with, 32 
Bate, Captain : influence, 122 
Baxter, Kichard, 43, 54, 212, 350, 
407 

Bechuanas melted, 100 
Beecher, Dr. Lyman, 314 
Bees, 152 

Bible, superiority of, 15; transla- 
tions, 16 ; glory of England, 76 ; 
presented at the Queen's corona- 
tion, 103 ; where did it come 
from ? 135 ; the power of a torn 
leaf, 258 

Bible Societies, 19 

Bible Society, British and Foreign, 

20 ; in seasons of sorrow, 114 ; 

embracing opportunities, 204 ; 

Ring Theatre, 244 
Birds : how are such numbers fed ? 

14 

Bird in the church, 217 
Births, average number of, 37 
Blessings : three requisites, 28 ; to 

keep, 232 
Blind, 28; those cured by Christ, 

85 

Blood of Christ, 30 

Body, wonders of human, 31 ; Dr. 

Payson, 105 
Boldness. See Courage. 
Bondage, 32 

Books, multiplication of, 148 

Borromeo, Cardinal, 86 

Boyle, Hon. R., 275 

Bradford, John, 241, 351 

Bread, 33 ; fruit tree, 33 

Bridge, a living, 42 

Britain, Great, 102 ; agricultural 
facts, 3 ; army, 12 ; constitu- 
tion founded on the Bible, 15 ; 
number of blind in, 28 ; coloniz- 
ation, 49 ; intemperance, 67 j 



410 



INDEX. 



emigration, 73 ; literature of, 
149 ; lunacy, 159 ; navy, 193 ; 
first newspaper, 195 ; Protestant 
! constitution, 252 ; shipping, 289 

Buddha, saying of, 349 

Burdens, 34 ; losing, 210 ; lighten- 
ing, 214 

Burials. See Funerals. 

Burmah, first convert in, 356 ; com- 
municants, 51 ; good answer of 
a child in, 98 

Care : ''Father knows h.ow much. I 
can carry," 34 

Carelessness, 34 ; of mothers and 
nurses, 37 ; letters and stamps, 
&c., 156 

Carlo, Monte, gambling, 97 

Caste : separation, 370 

Ceylon, communicants, 51 

Chalmers, Dr., on amusements, o 

Chancellor, CoL, sudden death of, 
323 

Charity, 35 

Charlotte, Queen, 64 

Chatteris, Col., 109 

Chatterton, 326 

Cheerfulness, 36, 185 

Children, 37 ; conversion of, 53 {See 
Education, Ragged Schools, 
Sunday Schools) ; a child taught 
the resurrection, 95 ; influence 
of a child, 96 ; number of home- 
less, 110; estimated relative 
death-rate of rich and poor, 140 ; 
restitution by a child, 274 ; 
*' Sunday under the shawl," 284 ; 
a child's prayer, 236 ; lost, 156 ; 
*'I'm following," 212; the 
April of childhood, 212; the 
child's message, 359 

China, missionary progress in, 51, 
176, 177 ; Foundling Home at 
Hong Kong, 118 ; first news- 
paper, 194 ; proverb, 293 
Christ, 39 {See Appropriation, Blood 
of Christ) ; eternity with, 79 ; 
salvation through, 290 ; our 
substitute, 321 ; sympathy of, 
337 

Christianity, 43 ; contrast with 
Mahommedanism, 15 ; and 
charity, 35; Persian, Jew, and 
Christian, 98 ; England a pro- 
fessing Christian country, 102 

Christmas, 47 ; after Christmas, 62 ; 
a touching story, 84 



Chrysostom, testimony to, 307 
Church, number of different sectiona 

of, 45 ; the treasures of, 228 ; 

influence on the world, 397 
Cities, population of great, 153 ; 

three great seaports, 76. See 

London. 

Clarkson, Thomas, perseverance of, 
222 

Clock, floral, 353 
Coachman and his prayer, 332 
Coal, 381 
Cofiins, 95 

Coligny, Admiral, 356 
Colonization, British, 49 
Colour blindness, 29 
Communicants, 50 
Confession of sin, 52 
Conscience, 52 

Conversation, 52 ; R-ev. R. Knill, 
54 ; number of English words 
in use, 135 ; an infidel's, 121 

Conversion, 52 ; (remarkable cases : 
See Providence) ; restores man 
to reason, 390 

Coral islands, springs in, 387 

Counsel. See Advice. 

Courage, 55 ; missionary, 175 ; 
Ramsgate lifeboat, 143 

Covetousness, 56 

Crime, 57. See Drunkenness, J uve- 
nile crime, Prisons, Thieves, &c. 
Crockford : gambling, 97 
Cruelty, 57 
Curiosity, 55 

Deaf and dumb, 59 

Death, 60 ; from accidents on rail- 
ways, mines, &c., 1 ; through 
drink, 60 ; number in England 
and Wales, 140 ; through the 
world, 141 ; of children, 37 
{See Suicides) ; triumph in, 68 ; 
Bedouin sheik, 275 ; sudden, 
323. {See Mortality.) 

Debt : aU settled, 210 

Dedication : noble example, 285 

Degeneration, 193 

Delav, 61 ; lost through, 205 

Dew," 318 

Dickens' testimony against Popery, 
230 

Difficulties, overcoming, 879 
Discouragement, 62 
Diseases, number of, 32 
Divorce, through drink, 66 
Doddridge, Dr., 256 



INDEX. 



411 



Doxolo^, see a," 232 
Dreams, striking, 41, 61, 147, 167, 
304 

Dress, 64 {See Harvest miracle, 150) ; 

waste in, 381 
Drowning-, 65 

Drunkenness, 65 {See Liquor traffic, 
Ragged Schools, Temperance) ; 
death-rate, 184 ; prisons, 147 

Duty, 67, 317 

Eagle, national sign, 190 
Early rising, 352 

Education, 68 ; when does it begin ? 
187 

Edwards, Jonathan, 350 
Elder-tree, emblem of weakness, 165 
Emigration, 73. {See Colonization.) 
Energy, 75 

England and "Wales, 75 {See Great 
Britain) ; land under cultiva- 
tion, 3 ; Bible, 17 ; intemper- 
ance, 67 ; education, 70 ; foreign- 
ers in, 93; correspondence in, 
139; lunacy, 159; marriages, 
163 ; prisons, 246 ; days of 
thanksgiving, 347 

Envy, 76 

Ephphatha Sunday, 59 
Error, 77 

Eternity, 78 ; Dr. Payson, 108 
Evidences of Christianity, 43 
Expediency, 111 

Failures, 80 

Faith 80 {See Appropriation, 
Trust) ; analogy of, 207 ; and 
praise, 232 

Falls, persons killed by, 1 ; Rev. C. 
Simeon, remark, 32 

Families, 82 

Family prayer, 82 

Farmers in England and Wales, 4 ; 
the sceptical farmer, 107 ; order- 
ly farm, 207 ; striking story, 346 

Father God, 84 [See Adoption, Bur- 
dens) ; Father's not afraid — 
why should I " 85 

Fear, 85 ; and love, 159 

Few : the power of small armies, 
12. {See Small congregations.) 

Fire, 87 ; death and property lost 
through, 38, 98 ; proverb, 252 ; 
the great fire in London, 89 

First things, 89 

Fisheries, 90 

Flattery, 91 



Flowers, Alpine, 80; Letter Mission, 
91 ; child taught by, 95 ; appar- 
ent waste in, 99; Adanson's 
funeral, 132; Ariosto's legend, 
223 ; floral clock, 353 

Food, 92 {See Bread) ; harvest mira- 
cle, 150 

Forbearance, Divine, 93 

Foreigners in England and Wales, 
93 

Forgiveness of injuries, 165 
"Free, Tse," 312 
Fresh- water springs, 299 
Friends, 90 ; "Do you want a 

Friend F" 357 
Fruit orchards in England and 

Wales, 3 ; in barren places, 14 ; 

Bread-fruit tree, 33 ; coolness of, 

384 ; spiritual, 63 
Funerals, 94; child's question, 60; 

story, 96, 107 

Galileo, 201 
Gambling, 97 
Gems, 359 

Gentleness, 2 ; sago palm tree, 101 

Gerhardt, Paul, 245 

Gibbon, his estate, 26 

Gifts, difi"erent, 379 

Gilbert, Sir H., 288 

Gilbert, Mrs., 362 

God, 98. {See Goodness, Mercy.) 

Gold sweepings, 152 

Goodness of God, 99 

Gospel, 100; the walking gospel, 
122 ; ashamed of, 305 

Grace, 101 ; and pardon, 209 

Grass {See Agricultural facts) ; use- 
fulness of, 132 ; emblem of mor- 
tality, 184 

Grotius, saying of, 227 

Growth, Christian, 103 

Grumbling Street, living in, 347 

Guttenburg's dream, 147 

Gypsy dying, 291 

Habits, bad, 104 

Hagar's Well, 385 

Hamilton, Bishop, 30 

Happiness, 105; and peace, 216; 

poor but happy, 228. (Ste 

Cheerfulness, Joy.) 
Hardcastle, Mr, Joseph, happy 

death, 83 
Harvest, 106 ; harvest miracle, 150 
Heaven, 107; one language in 

heaven, 135 



412 



INDEX. 



Hell, 108 

Help, 109 ; sometimes from unlikely 

quarters, 7 
Hill, Rowland, 129, 332 
Holiday, five weeks', 353 
Holy Spirit, 318 ; power, 240 ; need 

of His teaching, 296 ; sword of, 

298 

Home, 120 ; " Slie always made 

home happy," 187 ; miserable 

through drink, 67 ; Foundling, 

118; Sailors', 289 
Honesty, 111 
Honour, post of, 379 
Hope, 90 ; resurrection hope, 95 ; 

"Danger? no; all hope," 108; 

in the end, 203 
Hospitals, 112; Blind, 29 ; Hospital 

Sunday, 113 
Howard, John, 246, 248 
Hume; remarkable coincidence, 26, 

119, 370 
Humiliation, 111 
Hunter, Dr. John, 322 
Huntingdon, Countess of, 95 
Hydrophobia, 361 

Ice, 115 

Iceland, salutation in, 105 
Idleness, 152 
If, 117 

Inconsistency, 117 

India, communicants in, 51 

Infants, 37, 118 

Infidelity, 118; striking history of 
Bible printing, 26; no infidel 
book in Welsh, 27 ; national, 
190 ; testimony of, 406 

Infirmities. See Blind, Deaf and 
Dumb, &c. Moon's testimony 
about i3lindn ess, 30 

Influence, 121. (xS^^ Usefulness. ) 

Isidore, St., 221 

Jewels, Scriptural texts like, 123 

Jews, 124 ; funeral custom, 95 ; 
Persian, Jew, and Christian, 98 ; 
proverb of the four keys, 106 ; 
Judaism and Christianity, 126 

Joy, 128, 190; Hannah More's dy- 
ing testimony, 105 ; weeping for 
joy, 407 

Judson, Dr., 254 
Just as I am," origin of the hymn, 
52 

Justice, 129 
Juvenile crime, 130 



Key: The Master keeps the key," 
253 

Kindness, 131; cup of cold water, 385 
Kitchen fireplace, 382 
Knill, Rev. R., 54, 373 



Lamb of God, 254 

Lancaster, Joseph, 68 

Languages, 134 

Late : "almost too late," 358 

Law, the, 135; the three stages of 

law^ 266 
Lawrence, Sir John, 122 
Lawyers, Sunday School Teachers, 

330 

Learning, 138 ; never too late, 202 
Leif child, Dr., anecdotes, 87, 405 
Leighton, Archbishop, 95, 163 
Leisure, 4 

Lepers, cruelty to, 58 

Letters, 139; without address, 34 ; 
at Christmas, 48 ; Flower Letter 
Mission, 90 

Lianas of Brazil, 91 

Liberality. (ISee Charity.) Just be- 
fore generous, 129 ; power of 
littles, 142; the liberal widow 
repaid, 183 

Liberty. (/Sei? Bondage, Slavery.) 

Life, 140 ; long enough to be useful, 
123 ; longevity of the Jews, 
145 

Lifeboats, 141 

Lighthouses, 144 

Linnaeus, 243, 353 

Liquor trafiic, 145 

Literature, 147 ; missionary, 179 

Little sins, 309 

Little things, 150 ; only a pin, 104 ; 
observing, 202; shipworm, 305 

Liverpool, statement about public- 
houses, 146 

London, 153 ; charities, 35 ; com- 
municants, 51 ; crime, 57 ; great 
fire, 89; marriages, 164; churches 
still required, 401 

Lost, 155 

Love, 157 

Loving-kindness, Divine, 166 
Lucifer matches, 88, 152 
Lunatics, 66, 159 

Luther : translation of the Bible, 17, 
18 ; order, 206 ; sayings of, 
231, 325, 366 

Luxuries, 162, 338 ; waste, 381 

Lying punished, 163 



INDEX. 



413 



Madagascar, missionary work in, 
176 

Magpie's nest, 188 

Marriages, 71, 163 ; proportion of 

cousins marrying, 160; divorce 

through drink, 66 
Mcllvaine, Bishop, 61, 79, 86, 166, 

239 

Means, using the, 306 

Meat, proportion of, consumed in 

different countries, 92 
Meekness, 165 ; the Quaker, 338 
Mercy, 89, 166 
Merit, Hannah More on, 105 
Metlakatlah, 55 

Milk, value of, consumed in the 

United Kingdom, 33 
Mines, persons killed in, 1 
Minute, things happening in a, 

168 

Missionary work, 169 ; translation 
of the Bible by missionaries, 
16 ; helped by the British and 
Foreign Bible Society, 25 ; com- 
municants in mission field, 227 ; 
the power of a single Gospel and 
a few tracts, 28 ; Christmas at 
our mission stations, 27 ; Met- 
lakatlah, 55 ; the poor in the 
mission field, 227 ; China, 304 ; 
example of the power of influ- 
ence, 122 

Moments, spare, 354 

Monday, Saint, 396 

Money, 181 ; spent on the British 
army, 12 ; navy, 193 ; on charity 
in London, 35 ; on food, 33, 
92; on dress, 64; national 
education, 71; emigration, 74; 
funerals, 95 ; gambling, 97 ; 
house-rent. 111 ; drink, 145-6, 
342; luxuries, 162, 381 ; po- 
lice, 57; prisons, 247 ; railways, 
261-2 ; theatres, 348 ; on war, 
375 ; working-men's earnings, 
393. See also deficient harvests, 
107; relief of the poor, 227; 
Savings' Banks, &c. 

Moon's system for the blind, 30 

More, Hannah, tracts, 355; on time, 
351 ; her dying testimony, 105 

Mortality, 184. See Life. 

Mortification, 185 

Mothers, 186; llandolph'd testimony, 

85 ; influence, 404 
Mothers' meetings, 190 
Music, 108 



Napier, Sir Charles, 12 

Napoleon, sayings of, 205, 303, 321 

Nations, 190 ; power of Great Bri- 
tain, 102 ; days of thanksgiv- 
ing, 347 ; drain upon through 
war, 375-6 

Navy, British, 192 

Needles, the three, 186 

Neglect, 193 

Neighbours, 194 

Newton, Sir I., 14, 108 

Newspapers, 194 

New Year, 197 

Niagara, 152 

Noble, Robert, 208 

Obligation, 200 
Observation, 201 
Old age, 202 
Opportunities, 204 
Opposition, 206 

Orchids like the mantle of charity, 

158 
Order, 206 
Ordinances, 208 

Pain, 308 ; Dr. Payson, 105 

Palm : the sago palm, 103 ; travellei's 

palm, 384 
Paper : how used, 196 ; waste, 382 
Pardon, 209 ; and renewal, 292 
Parents, 212 (See Mothers) ; good 

example, 266 
Passion, story, 339 
Patience, 214; in missionary work, 

176; only be patient, 198; the 

Quaker, 338 
Patriotism, 192 
Patteson, Bishop, 68, 238 
Payne, Mr. (*' Home, sweet home "), 

110 

Peace, 100, 215 ; like still waters, 
385 

Peacemakers, 218 

Penn, William, saying of, 362, 363 

Penny, fractions of, 152 

Persecution, 219 

Perseverance, 220, 322 

Persian, Jew, and Christian, 98 

Peter the Great, saying of, 192 

Physician, the pious, 285 

Pilgrim Fathers, 283 

Pin : only a pin, 104 

Plants, carnivorous, 343 

Pleasure, 223 ; Sunday excursions, 

282-3 ; of sin, 308 
Plymouth Breakwater, 77 



414 



INDEX. 



Police force, 57 

Polycarp, early conversion of, 53 
Polynesia, 51 ; missionary work in, 
177 

Poor, 226 ; philanthropists, 35 ; 
homeless children in London, 
38 ; many, through drink, 65. 
See Relief of the poor, 229 

Popery, 230 ; anecdote, 156 

Population of the world, 224 ; Eng- 
land and Wales, 75 ; Great 
Britain, 102 

Potter, the, 392 

Pounds, John, 260 

Praise, 231 

Prayer, 232 ; answers to, 5 ; before 
giving, 36 ; family prayer, 52 ; 
every Sunday, 279 ; the snow 
prayer, 317 ; in the Spirit, 319 

Preachers, 240 ; " one word in your 
sermon," 79 ; not texts only," 
80 

Presence of God, 242 
Presents, New Year's, 197 
Preservation from danger, 87, 243 
Pride, 244 
Prisons, 246 

Prodigal, repentance of, 93 
Profession, 248 

Property lost through crime, 57; 
through carelessness, 155 ; value 
of, in the United Kingdom, 
76 

Prosperity, 249 

Protestant, origin of the word, 249. 

See Christianity. 
Proverbs, 252 

Providence, 253 ; who feeds the 
birds ? 28 ; escapes from fire, 
87, 244; Bible Society history, 
26, 27 

Public-houses, number of, in United 
Kingdom, 145 ; in Liverpool, 
146 ; London, 154 

Quarrelling, 255 
Quietness, 259 

R : the three R's, 199 
Ragged schools, 50, 260 
Raikes, Robert, 275, 279, 326 
Railways, 259 ; Sunday traffic, 
280-1 

Rain, 262 ; fable of raindrops, 153 

Redemption, 265 

Reed, Dr. A., 374 

Reed, William, the barber, 364 



Reformatory schools, 268 
Regeneration, 267 

Repentance, 269 ; of the repentant 

son, 93 ; Bechuanas, 100 
Reports, 270 

Reproof, 271 ; of Pharisaism, 383 
Resolution, 271 

Responsibility, 272 ; incident, 264 

Rest, 272 ; through eternity, 350 

Restitution, 274 

Restraint relaxed, 277 

Resurrection, 274 ; hope, 95 ; Talley- 
rand's caustic remark, 119 

Reverence, 275 

Reward, proportionate, 276 

Riches, 276 ; spent on luxuries, 162 ; 
the rich squire, 7 

Ring Theatre, 345 

Robe, the Queen receiving, 103 

Rock : the dying Christian, 120 

Rope, not long enough, 41 ; catching 
the, 80, 277 

Royalty (See Monarchy) : shorter 
lives, 141 

RusseU, Lord William, 350 

Sabbath, 279 (See Worship) ; observ* 

ances rewarded, 364 
Sailors, 288 ; boy at sea, 83, 188 
Salt, 289, 318 ; in the sea, 299 
Salvation, 290 ; acquainted with the 
plan of salvation, 39 ; saved 
alone, 82 ; by grace, 101 ; rest 
in, 273 ; the only true wisdom, 
390 

Samaritan, the Good, 46 
Sand-reed the, 397 
Savings' Banks, 293 
Scandal, 294 
Science, 295, 297 
Scoffing, 296 

Scriptures, 296 [See Bible) ; the 
power of a single gospel and a 
few tracts, 28 ; Scripture Union 
for children, 38; All right ! 
here's a Bible,'* 47: jewels, 
123 

Sea, 299 [See Salt, Fisheries, Sailors, 
Navy) ; casting sins into the sea, 
198, 201 ; occasional barrenness 
of, 13 ; illustration, 271 

Seaweed, 372 

Security, 301 

Soed, 371 

Self-denial, 302; "I can't afford, 
but I can sacrifice it, " 96 ; d 
great lesson in education, 70 



INDEX. 



Self-pleasing : Napoleon, 303 
Self-will, 188; Peter the Great's 

saying, 192 
Selfishness, 303 

Sermons, number preached, 279 
Serpents, 303 
Service, Christian, 304 
Shame, 305 

Ships, 305. See Fisheries, Navy. 
Ship-worm, 305 

Shipwrecks, 155, 306 {See Life- 
boats) ; worthlessness of money 
in, 182 

Sick and feeble, absent from public 

worship, 401 
Sierra Leone communicants, 51 ; 

missionary self-saorifice in, 175 
Simeon, Rev. C, 32, 166, 270 
Sin, 90, 307 {See Confession of sin) ; 

casting sins into the sea, 198, 

301 

Sincerity, 311 
Slavery, 312. See Anti- Slavery 

Society. 
Small congregations, 313 
*' Smile on me,'* 136 
Smith, Adam, on Popery, 231 
Snow, 315 ; Alpine flower, 81 ; the 

wall of snow, 257 ; use of, 361 
Soldiers, 317. [See Army, War, 

Warfare.) 
Sorrows. [See Trials, Suffering.) 
Springs in coral islands, 385, 387 
Squire, interesting story of a rich, 7 
Substitution, 321 
Success, 235, 322 
Sudden death, 323 
Suffering, 324. [See Pam, Trials.) 
Suffocation, number killed by, 1 
Sunday schools, 131, 279, 326 
Sunshine, value of, 106 
Surrender, 325 
Suspicion, 326 
Swearing, 332 

Sword of the Spirit, 296. See 103 
Sympathy, 334 ; national, 191 

Taxes, 337 

Telegraphs, particulars about, 139, 

152 
Temper, 338 

Temperance movement, 339 
Temptation, 342 

Thankfulness, 346; *'How much 
have you cost me F '* 266 ; 
" Have you ever thanked Him 
for it ? " 40 ; for one reason, 160 



Theatres, 347 ; Dr. Chalmers' advice 

about, 5 ; Ring Theatre, 244 
Thieves, 348 ; children trained as, 38 
Thornton, Rev. Spencer, 222 
Thorpe, John, 255 
Thorpe, W., 255 
Thought, 348 
Thrift, 198 

Time, 349 [See Minute) ; what might 
be accomplished, 392 ; " Time 
enough yet," 61, 404 

' Times,' the, 196 

Tracts, 354 ; striking coincidence, 

26 ; anecdote, 97 
Translations of the Bible, 16 
Travelling, a good plan, 239; the 

traveller's palm-tree, 384 
Trials, 359 
Trust, 363 
Truth, 367 
Try, 326, 366 
Tuilleries, 279 

Unbelief, 370 

XJnder-currents in Mediterranean, 

121 
Union, 370 

Unitarianism rebuked, 41 
United States, education in, 73 
Unselfishness, 371 

Usefulness, 371 ; I've never done 
any good," 62 

Vagrancy, 66 
Vandaleur, Arthur, 187 
Vicars, Hedley, 31, 109 
Vice, 374 

Vienna, Ring Theatre, 244 

Vilsburg, Captain, 363 

Voltaire, his infidel boast, 16; his 

nurse, 120 
Volunteers, 18 
Vow, Philip Henry's, 406 

Wages in harvest, 107. {See Working 



Waiting and working, 176 
Waldo, Peter, 355 

Wales. See Bible Society (British 

and Foreign), 25, 27 
Walking, holy, 374 
Walsh, John, 235 

War, 375 [See Army, Navy); 
money spent on, in Great Britain 
and Europe, 12 
Warfare, spiritual, 378 
Warnings, 380 



INDEX. 



Waste, 381; waste lands of Great 

Britain, 155; reclaiminf^, 13; 
Waste not, want not," 33 
Watchfulness, 382 
Water, 383 ; remarkable preservation, 

57 [See Wells) ; fresh, springs 

in the sea, 360 
Waterloo, 263 
Weakness, 237, 386 
Wedding-rings, 164 
Wellington, Duke of ^, 377 
Y/ells, 387; Hagar's, . .5 
Wesley, John, his will, 96 ; Mrs. 

Wesley on amusement, 4 ; love 

of order, 207 ; reproof, 271 
Whitfield, Rev. G.: the soft pillow, 

271 ; the furnace, 360 
"Whosoever," 290 
WickUffe, John, 355 
Wilberforce, 9, 239 
Wind, 387; the right use of the 

sails, 28 
Winter, 389 
Wisdom, 390 
Work, 391 ; and food, 92 



Work, spiritual, 392 [See Useful- 
ness) ; working and waiting, 
176 ; and prayer, 234 

Working classes, 393 ; and luxuries* 
162 

World, 396 ; what Christianity has 
done for the, 45 

Worms : earth-worms, 151 ; the ship- 
worm, 305 

Worship, 398. See Sabbath. Small 
congregations. 

Xerxes, army of, 11 

Year, New, 197. See Time. 

Yeomanry, 13 

Young, 404 {See Children, Educa- 
tion, Juvenile crime) ; interest 
in missions, 179 

Zeal, 407 

Zealand, New, emigration to, 73 ; 
family prayer, 83 ; missionary 
work, 176 



EEEATA. 

Page 17, line 29 : for Ledbury read North Nibley. 
„ 26, line 8; /or a.d. lll^ o^ead 1778. 
„ 230, line 17 : for 3,539,686 read 3,854,686. 



